Friendship On Fire
by CrimsonNephilim88
Summary: An old ally of Zordon becomes a new friend to the Power Rangers and captures the blue rangers eye. Meanwhile, Kim and Jason wonder if they could ever work out their timing to become more to each other without risking their friendship. MMPR thru Turbo Movie.
1. Chapter 1 - Recurring Dream

Disclaimer: Power Rangers belongs to Saban. I own nothing other than the original character.

* * *

Jason stumbled backwards into an outcropping of the mountains behind him, barely managing to dodge a downward swing of Goldar's sword.

The visor of his helmet was shattered, exposing his left eye. His ranger suit was torn in several places, exposing the muscular flesh of his arms and torso it was supposed to protect. He had cuts that were bleeding, bruises, and burns in places his suit no longer covered.

"You can't win Red Ranger. Surrender now and I will grant you a quick end!" Goldar taunted from his position, standing a few feet away from Jason.

"You're delusional, Goldar! I'll never surrender to you!" Jason exclaimed forcefully, as he tightened his grip around the hilt of his Power Sword.

"Resist if you want, but I will relish in finally ending you, Jason." Goldar responded, his features twisting into a sickening smirk that exposed his jagged teeth as he continued his advance towards Jason.

 _"Oh man. I wish the other guys were here."_ Jason internally prayed for the other rangers to come to his aid. His communicator was damaged, leaving him unable to teleport, and even though he had tried to reach his friends, Alpha, and Zordon, there had been no response to his calls for help.

For every advance forward Goldar made, Jason took a step back. Soon, he felt the coolness of hard stone press against his back. Looking over his shoulder, Jason saw that he'd backed himself into the cliffside. To his right was a wall of jagged stone and to his left was a steep drop-off, he had nowhere left to go. Despite summoning every ounce of his strength and will to keep himself standing, he knew he couldn't last much longer.

 _"Guys, where are you!?"_ Jason felt panic grip at him and a chill run through his body that he hadn't felt since he was in Rita's dark dimension fighting against Goldar and Tommy when he was still under Rita's evil spell.

Taking his last step, Goldar closed the gap between him and the red ranger, his smile twisting even further as his victory over Jason loomed before him. Gripping the hilt of his sword with both of his clawed hands, Goldar lifted it into the air, aimed for Jason's heart. "Say goodbye Red Ranger!"

Jason's memory flashed of images of his friends and mentor, the last one to linger in his mind being of his best friend in pink.

 _"I'm sorry, Kim..."_ He thought as his mind came back to the present as he saw Goldar swing down towards him, and closed his eyes anticipating his end. His eyes flew open at the sudden screech of a bird that sounded as if it were right next to him. In a flash, a streak of fire flew in front of him, sending Goldar stumbling back and losing his grip on his sword.

"What…" was all Jason managed to get out as he saw Goldar's sword on the ground and his foe knocked back a good distance from him.

Goldar pushed himself to his feet and moved to charge, but was stopped as Jason saw an orange-reddish streak dive in front of Goldar. It flew around him, creating archs of fire that left Goldar trapped with nowhere to move or escape the flames that licked at him. Letting out a frustrated growl at his stolen victory, Goldar teleported away.

Breathing heavily from his battle and exhausted, Jason brought his hands up to his helmet, undid the latches and pulled it off. He starred at the spot on the ground a few feet in front of him where Goldar had been, marred by scorch marks. A screech drew his attention away from the spot on the ground, making him lift his head upwards. The same streak that he'd seen moments before flew closer to him. It circled around a few times before landing a few feet in front of him.

"A bird?" He voiced the questioned out loud as he looked at the sight before his eyes.

"What are you?" Jason asked the creature standing before him. He'd never seen any birds like it before, despite all the strange things he'd come to encounter since becoming a ranger several months ago.

The bird was translucent with an aura around it that was constantly shifting between yellow, orange, and a red that was a few shades lighter than his suit. The sight making him think of the flames it created earlier fending off Goldar and saving his life.

Standing on its feet, the bird was as tall as him, and despite that its wings were currently folded; he could tell that they'd most likely be double his size if they were open.

"Thank you." Was all Jason could think to say to it as it starred at him with curious, yet calm eyes. He stepped closer to it, raising a gloved hand towards the bird as if to touch it. Before his fingers connected with the creature, it spread its wings open. The motion created a gust of wind that kicked up the dust from the ground.

Jason threw up his arms to cover his face from the cloud of dust. He dropped them as the dust began to settle, then looked up and watched as the bird flew away and out of sight faster than he could blink, leaving streaks of fire in its wake dissipating in the air.

* * *

"Jason..." A feminine voice to his left called out, trying to get his attention. "Jason?"

Feeling a gentle nudge to his arm, the teen in red snapped back to reality to see his four friends all staring back at him with concerned looks on their faces. He turned to Trini, who sat to his left, his mind registering it was her voice that was trying to get his attention. "Hmm? Sorry, what?"

"Hey man, you okay?" Zack asked from his seat directly across from him. The group of teens had come to the Juice Bar after school and was now seated at their regular table.

Jason shook his head, clearing his thoughts and refocused on his friends. "Yeah bro, sorry about that. Just thinking about a dream I've been having for the last few days."

The other rangers exchanged glances with each other before looking back to their friend and leader. "The one about Goldar, the green candle, and Tommy losing his powers?" Kimberly asked in a low voice from her spot next to him on his right.

Jason shook his head "no". "Goldar, yes, but no to the candle and Tommy."

He sighed, rubbing his hands over his face before dropping them back on top of the table. "That dream is getting less frequent and I haven't had it in a while. This one is…different."

"How so?" Billy inquired from his seat next to Trini. "It must be extremely perplexing if it's causing you an escalated sense of bewilderment."

Jason's eyes shifted from Billy to Trini in a silent gesture to ask her to translate.

"He said your dream must be really confusing if it's causing you to be so distracted." Trini explained.

Jason let out a short laugh and his played with the empty cup in front of him. "Confusing is putting it lightly."

Turning over the thoughts of the dream in his head, he lifted his shoulder in a shrug. "I guess. I mean…it starts off the same way. I'm fighting for my life only to be saved in the end at the last second."

"How long have you been having it?" Kimberly asked, a puzzled expression crossing her pretty features.

He let silence fall over their table as he considered her question. "I don't know. A couple of weeks I guess." Jason answered dropping his eyes to the empty cup in his hands on the table.

"And it's the same every time?" Zack asked.

Jason lifted his eyebrows as he at Zack's inquiry. "Yeah…at least from what I can remember after I've woken up."

"What exactly happens in the dream?" Trini asked, her brows furrowed in curiosity.

Jason lifted his head and took note of the people walking by their table. He looked to his friends before motioning towards the exit with a nod of his head. "If we're going to talk about this, we should probably head out."

Recognizing the look of concern on their friend's face about their conversation being overheard, the other teens nodded in agreement. They each stood up from their seats, gathered their belongings, and headed for the exit of the Youth Center.

* * *

"It's always the same thing. I'm in the middle of this intense battle with Goldar...my helmet is damaged, communicator is shot, and my suit is in shreds. I can't contact anyone for help or teleport away. I'm so tired and weak that Goldar manages to corner me, and just as I think I'm done for, this…thing appears out of nowhere and saves me." Jason went over the events of his dream as he and his friends walked down one of the pathways through the park on their way home. The sun was beginning to set, turning the sky a soft pink.

"What's this "thing" that saves you?" Kim asked as she walked in-step with him off to his right. Zack walked beside him to his left, with Trini and Billy walking in front of them.

Jason shrugged at the petite brunette's question. "I'm not sure myself. All I can really remember is that it sort of looked like a bird."

Suddenly remembering the memory of her that played in his dream, Jason glanced over to Kim beside him. _"Thankfully, it's just a dream."_ Feeling his eyes on her, Kim turned her head ever so slightly to look up at her best friend. She blinked a few times as her mind registered the look in his eyes as he starred at her.

"What?" she asked, crinkling her nose at him and giving him a smile that only he could evoke from her.

"Nothing. Just thinking." He said, returning the smile and shaking his head a bit. _"About you."_

Kim opened her mouth to ask him about what exactly he was thinking about when Trini abruptly stopped her steps forward as she turned to face Jason, causing Kim to walk into her. "Whoa! Trini, what's with the sudden stop?"

"Jason, you said a bird? A bird saved you?" She questioned looking for confirmation on what he'd just said.

Jason remained silent, considering Trini's response and mentally went over the events of his recurring dream. Finally, he ran a hand through his hair looking up to meet her gaze. "I know it sounds crazy now that I'm saying it out loud, but yeah…I'm pretty sure that's what it was. Except…it didn't look like any kind of bird I've ever seen before. It was-"

"Translucent? You could see through it?" Billy asked in an attempt to finish Jason's thought.

Jason looked over to Billy, confusion evident on his face as to how his friend knew what had seen in his dream. "Yeah…how did you know?"

"Was it this reddish-orange color? With something like an aura around it that looked like fire?" asked Zack as he turned to better face the group.

As Kim listened to the others, a thought occurred to her. "Jason…in this dream…were you in the mountains?" she interjected before he had a chance to answer Zack.

Jason raised his hands as to signal his friends to wait a moment as he attempted to wrap his head around as to how they knew the details of his dream. "Okay, wait a minute…how do you guys know?"

A silence reined over them for a few moments as each of the teens looked between each other, waiting to see who would speak first.

"I had the same dream." Trini finally spoke up, breaking the silence.

"Me too." Zack proclaimed.

"Affirmative." said Billy

"Same here." stated Kimberly.

"You guys…have all had the same dream?" Jason questioned.

"That seems to be the consensus." Billy replied as the others shook their heads in the affirmative.

"Well…not exactly the same. One thing was different in mine." Kim interjected, causing her friends to all bring their attention to her.

"What do you mean, Kim?" Trini asked.

"Well, in mine, everything is like Jason said, except I wasn't fighting Goldar. I was fighting the Samurai Fan Man." Kimberly explained.

"Now that you mention it, it was the same for me. Everything was then same, except I was against the Knasty Knight." Zack added.

"Madam Woe." said Billy.

"Bones." added Trini.

"What do you think it means?" asked Jason as his eyes moved to each member of their small group. Each of them looking as uncertain as the other.

"Maybe it means we have a major battle ahead?" Kim surmised as she looked at her friends, her voice tinted with worry as a feeling of unease settled over her.

"Maybe we should talk to Zordon? Rita might be up to something or he at least might know the significance of the bird saving us." Trini suggested.

"Good idea." said Jason.

They double-checked their surroundings once more to ensure they were out of sight of any passersby before disappearing in streaks of light of their respective colors to their base of operations.


	2. Chapter 2 - Phoenix

AN: Anything in relation to Eltar and the Phoenix powers are all improvised. Also, I am aware that I am referring to the new character as "the girl", she, or her until her name is "officially" given.

Also, thank you to JPHBK for allowing me to borrow the concept of the window entry from "Reflections of Red and Pink".

Disclaimer: Power Rangers belongs to Saban. I own nothing other than the original character.

* * *

"Oh, greetings rangers! How nice of you all to visit." Alpha 5 greeted the teens upon materializing in the Command Center.

"Is something the matter? You all looked troubled." Inquired Zordon as he looked over his ranger team.

Trini stepped forward, positioning herself in front of their leader. "Zordon, there's something we wanted your help with."

"If it is in my power to help, then I shall do so. What is the trouble?" Zordon replied.

Billy took a few steps forward as well to stand beside Alpha. "It seems that we have all been experiencing a dream with an abundance of mutual occurrences." Billy explained.

Alpha cocked his head to the side as a sign of curiosity. "You've all been having a "shared dream"?"

"Yeah, and the same thing seems to happen in the dream for all of us, except for one thing." Kimberly stated as her gaze alternated between Alpha and Zordon.

"What precisely happens in this dream?" Zordon asked.

"A fight." Jason replied. "Except who we're fighting is different for each of us, and they are stronger than when we faced them before." He continued on to explain.

"Who were you fighting?" Zordon inquired, concern entering their leader's voice.

"Goldar." Jason replied. "But, it's different for the rest of the guys."

"Knasty Knight." Said Zack.

"Samurai Fan Man." Said Kimberly.

"Madam Woe." Said Billy.

"Bones." Said Trini.

"Tell me everything you can remember." asked Zordon. The rest of the team all turned to Jason, silently giving him the go-ahead to re-tell the details.

Jason looked up to his mentor, noting his intense focus on him as he waited for him to continue. "Well…from what I can remember, I was worn out and weak. My helmet was damaged and my suit was torn to shreds."

Jason's brow furrowed as he recalled that last particular detail. He gaze fell from Zordon down to a spot on the control console in front of him. _"Our suits have never taken that kind of damage before, no matter what we faced of who we fought."_ Jason thought to himself. _"For that to happen, our enemy would have to be incredibly strong or…our powers would have somehow managed to weaken."_

At that thought, the crease that had formed on Jason's brow deepened. _"Is something going to happen to our powers?"_

He was broken out of his train of thought as he felt a hand wrap around his wrist. He looked down to see that it was Kim's, who was now standing beside him.

"You spaced out again." Kim said as she searched his eyes in hopes of finding some hint to what was running through his mind.

"Sorry. Guess this dream has me a little more distracted than I thought." Jason replied, noticing her attempt to read him.

"Please, continue." Zordon gently prodded as he noted the distressed look that crossed the ranger leader's face.

"Right…sorry." Jason said as he gave his head a quick shake and re-organized his thoughts.

"Um…well…to add to all of that, my communicator was broken and I couldn't call for help or teleport out. Then Goldar has me cornered, but before he manages to…kill me…"

Jason forced out the last couple of words as they stuck in his throat and felt a sudden chill run through his spine at the memory. "This…creature…like a bird made out of fire saves me."

"It's the same for all of us." Kim added as she tore her eyes from Jason to look up at Zordon.

Their mentor remained silent for several moments as he pondered over the details of the dream. "I see."

"Do you think it means anything, Zordon?" Billy asked.

"Could it mean Rita might be up to something?" Trini interjected.

Zordon looked to each ranger. The fact that he was considering something was evident on his face. "Perhaps it is time I introduced you all to someone." The rangers looked away from Zordon to exchange glances with each other.

"Who?" asked Trini.

"When I first came to Earth, in pursuit of Rita, I brought an old friend and ally with me who possess a very unique and rare power. When Rita learned of their presence here, she sent Goldar to try and capture them to use their powers for destruction. We managed to evade Rita and Goldar's attempt, but knowing that neither of them would stop to try and capture my friend, I placed them into a deep sleep in a chamber located far beneath the command center." Zordon explained.

"So, you're friend has been asleep somewhere beneath the command center for the last ten-thousand years?" Billy asked.

"Yes, but I believe now it is time that I have awoken them." Zordon answered the young man in blue.

"Hold on a sec…how exactly does this relate the dream we've all been having?" Zack questioned.

"I believe your questions will be answered soon." Zordon answered with reassurance. "Alpha, please teleport her here."

"Right away, Zordon." Alpha replied as he moved over to the main control console and began to input a sequence of buttons.

"Her?" Jason inquired.

As if to answer his question, a light started to glow in front of the rangers. It started off dim, then rapidly began to grow brighter as it took on the appearance of a flame. The rangers stepped back several steps back in surprise as the flame burst, making it stretch upwards to match their height and brought their hands up to shield their eyes from the glow. Then flame began to dissipate, taking on the form of human. The rangers dropped their hands as the spectacle ended, to see a young woman standing before them with her eyes closed.

"It is good to have you back, phoenix." Zordon said to the girl who appeared as the group of teens looked from the girl in front of them back up to their leader, then dropped their gaze back down. Her eyelids fluttered as she slowly opened them. A collective gasp rang out from the team as her eyes opened to focus on them.

Physically, she looked no older than the rangers, but her eyes were a haunting shade of amber. They were almond shaped, and looked as if they glowed with an orange tint, which shifted from red to yellow in the light as if a flame danced behind them as her eyes darted back and forth across the chamber to each of the rangers. Her complexion was a warm tan, with dark brown hair that looked nearly black. It lay straight down her back and fell to just below her waist. Her ears were pierced with three piercings in her left ear and one on her right. On the left ear was a small gold hoop located just near the top of her ear, while the lobe was pierced twice with a simple gold stud, and just below it was a black marquise stone that was set into an antiqued gold backing that held a feather dangling below it that seemed to shift in color. The lone piercing in her right ear mimicked the simple stud of that on her left. She wore leather armor with metal plates adorning it as added protection that were shaped to mimic the look of feathers, and a pair of daggers laid lengthwise were strapped to her waist behind her back.

The rangers looked around to each other in confusion, caution displayed on their faces. Jason returned his attention to the girl in front of them, observing her. He noted that despite her odd appearance and lean frame, her build indicated that she could more than likely hold her own in a fight if she had to. He carefully stepped forward towards the girl, the movement catching her attention out of the corner of her eye. She abruptly turned her gaze from Trini who was to the right of Jason, back to him, making Jason momentarily freeze on the spot as her eyes met his.

As he came within reaching distance of her, Jason raised his hand to her to shake hers. "Hi…I'm-"

"Jason…the red ranger, commander of the Tyrannosaurus dinozord, and leader of the power rangers." the girl interrupted him. Jason's eyes went wide at her words, puzzled as to how she knew who he was. She looked down to his hand, outstretched towards her then back up to meet his gaze. Finally, she raised her hand, taking his in a firm grip accepting the greeting.

"You know who I am?" Jason asked as they let go of each other, dropping their hands back to their sides.

"Yes." Was all she said in return as her eyes roamed away from his to land on a young man in blue standing behind Jason off to his left next to a control console. "William…the Blue Ranger and commander of the Triceratops dinozord."

Her eyes then floated to Zack, who stood just in front of Billy. "Zachary…the Black Ranger and commander of the Mastodon dinozord."

Her eyes passed over Jason, to his right, landing on Kim. "Kimberly…the Pink Ranger and commander of the Pterodactyl dinozord."

Then finally to Trini who stood just in front of Kim. "Trini…the Yellow Ranger and commander of the Saber-Tooth Tiger dinozord."

"Um…" Kim interjected as she moved up to stand beside Jason. "It's nice to meet you, but I'm confused." she said as her eyes went from the girl back up to Zordon. "Zordon, what does she have to do with our dream and the bird that was in it?"

At this, the girl turned away from the rangers to look up at Zordon. Her eyes meet his in a silent question that he seemed to understand. With a gentle nod, he acknowledged her. "Go ahead and show them." Her eyes then dropped down to Alpha was standing a couple feet beside her.

"It's all right. You can trust them." Alpha said in a cheerful tone as he read also read the question in her eyes.

Nodding in response, she turned back around to face the rangers and with one last glace around at them, she closed her eyes. They stood still, five pairs of eyes focused on her waiting to see what Zordon and Alpha meant about being able to trust them. A bright red aura began to emit from the girl, flickering out in different directions around her body. With a loud "WHOOSH", the aura turned into a roaring flame causing the rangers stumble back and away. They watched in shock as the flame grew bigger and consumed the girl, as they continued to back away from the fire, once again bringing their arms up in an attempt to protect themselves from the heat emitting from it. They huddled together on the steps to the Viewing Globe behind Jason as he pushed the others to stand behind him.

"Zordon! Alpha!" Kim called out from behind Jason, an arm wrapped around his bicep as she and the others watched the fire grow. Her eyes lifted to their leader and the android standing near the main computer console before dropping back down to the fire. The fire then began to retract itself, and with another loud "WHOOSH" it died out.

Dropping their arms down, the five rangers blinked and rubbed their eyes several times to get them to readjust to the dimmer lighting of the command center. Once they could see properly, their jaws dropped at the sight in front of them. An enormous bird stood before them, taking up nearly half of the space of the circle the control panels formed in the middle of the main chamber. It stood on its feet, nearly towering over the five teenagers.

"Whoa…" Zack remarked as he stepped from beside his friend to get a closer look at the creature.

"Ai yi yi yi yi! I thought my circuit boards were going to fry!" Alpha cried out. The robot had retreated from his post at the control panels to stand behind the computer in order to escape the fire that was raging only a few moments prior.

"Amazing." stated Billy as he and the others now moved forward to inspect the large animal. It watched as each ranger filed out from behind their leader to move around it.

"It's huge…" said Zack as he slowly walked around the bird.

Trini and Kim moved hand-in-hand with each other in the opposite direction of Zack. Trini stopped as she reached the back of the enormous bird. "Look at its feathers."

The feathers in question were several inches long and shimmered between a bright red, orange, and yellow in the lighting. Its tail feathers were about two-feet long in length, with a second set of longer feathers that stretched at least a yard or two in length that went from a bright red near the bottom and faded into a crimson red at the top, with the crest feathers on the back of its head to match.

"They're beautiful." Kimberly commented as she dared to lean in to get a closer look. She felt Trini place her other hand on her should, gently pushing her back.

"Careful, Kim." Trini gently warned her friend.

"Yeah…it might be dangerous." Zack commented as he came to stand beside the two girls.

"I assure you, she will not harm you." Zordon commented, reassuring his rangers that they were in no harm of the large creature standing before them.

"Zordon…you called her "phoenix"." Billy contemplated their mentor's words. "Is she a real phoenix? Like the ones from mythology?" he questioned.

"Yes, Billy, though not exactly as the ones you've come to know from human mythos. She is an Eltarian Phoenix. The form you see before you is not her true form, but one granted to her through her powers." Zordon explained.

"Her powers?" asked Kim as she turned to look up at Zordon.

Zordon elaborated further. "In human mythology, a phoenix is described to be a bird made of fire that can reincarnate itself from its ashes. An Eltarian Phoenix differs as they are not actual creatures that exist on Eltar. A person who has been born with the powers of the Phoenix has the ability to take on an avian form that resembles the ones seen in mythology. It is a rare gift that is not bestowed upon many from my homeworld."

Unlike the others, Jason hadn't moved to inspect the large animal, but instead had only moved to stand in front of it, trying to understand its tie to the dream he and the other rangers had shared. He saw as the animal's eyes looked over at him from the corners of its eyes, then turned its head away from the others to face him, bringing its head up to match his height. He watched as the creature cocked its head to the side as it starred at him with curious, yet calm eyes. A flash of recognition suddenly flew through Jason. _"It's you."_

* * *

"It's you." Jason repeated his thought out loud, causing the others to look over to him.

"Jase?" said Trini as she and the others all moved back to stand with him.

"This is bird from our dream." Jason said explaining his earlier outburst as he continued to study the animal's eyes.

"How? We all remember that bird being transparent, this one isn't." Zack remarked, pointing out the obvious difference between the one standing before them and the one they'd seen in their dream.

"Look at its eyes." Jason commented as he stepped back a bit for the others to move forward. The four rangers crowded together, looking into the creatures eyes.

Trini's eyes widened in astonishment as a wave of recognition shot through her as well. A gentle smile spread across her face as she observed the phoenix in its entirety. "He's right, it is you."

"This is too bizarre." stated Kim, as she too came to the realization. "But, why were we able to see through it in our dream?"

At the question, the phoenix retreated back from the group and bowed its head, closing its eyes in the process. They all watched closely before a spark flickered out from the creature, quickly bursting into flames, once again making the teens shrink back in surprise. The flames died down as quick as they'd appeared, and once more the human form of the girl from before stood in front of them.

"Okay…that's a really cool trick, but you gotta warn us before you do that." said Zack, causing the others the laugh at his reaction.

The girl smiled at his remark, amused. "My apologies if I frightened you. It wasn't my intention to do so."

She watched was the group walked forward, stopping when they came back to the center of the circle of computer panels, her eyes landing back onto Kimberly.

"To answer your earlier question, the form of me you all saw in your dreams was my astral form." She replied.

"Astral?" Kim questioned.

"As in Astral Projection. It's the term used to describe ones ability to project their sub-conscious or, in some belief, their soul outside of their physical body." Billy explained.

"That's correct." she replied, turning to Billy, giving him an amused smile as she studied him. "I'm impressed."

Billy blushed, a nervous smile forming on his face at her comment as he fidgeted from one foot to the other. "W-well, I do find the study and theories of the metaphysical to be rather fascinating." The other rangers noticed the exchange and their friend's reaction. They looked at each other with knowing smiles, before turning their attention back to the girl.

"Why did you choose a dream to show yourself to us?" Jason asked as he leaned on the ledge of one of the control panels, crossing his arms over his chest.

"To be honest, I am unsure myself as to why that occurred." she answered as she observed the five teenagers. "You all are as much a mystery to me as I am to all of you."

"You said the version we saw of was an astral projection of yourself." Billy pointed out. The girl fell silent, nodding her head in the affirmative as she pondered his claim. She dropped her eyes to a spot on the floor and narrowed them in thought.

 _"I projected myself to them, but not by my own will."_ The fact that she had done so bothered her a great deal. The sleeping spell Zordon put her under should have inhibited her to enter a dream state in order to keep her presence hidden.

"Usually, astral projection requires some sort of conscious awareness of where or who they are projecting to." She explained, once again debating the reason to why her astral self moved to find the five rangers.

"So, you had no idea you were doing it?" Trini asked as she compartmentalize and absorbed the information in her usual calm and practiced manner.

The girl shook her head in the negative. "Not consciously, no. As part of the sleeping spell to keep me hidden, Zordon inhibited me from dreaming to keep my astral form from moving as a precaution since we didn't know if or when I'd be re-awakened." Once more, she considered the five individuals before her, each one looking as perplexed as her. She looked up to the glowing tube that housed her friend before dropping her eyes back to the group of teenagers. _"They are his rangers…"_

"Something remarkably strong from you all must have called out and summoned me." She proposed after a brief bout of silence. They knew Zordon's powers were not something to question or doubt, but something had managed to break through the barrier of his sleeping spell to reach her.

"Perhaps the recent change with the rangers is the cause of this." Zordon offered as a reason for his friend and rangers to seek each other out subconsciously.

"Change? What do you mean?" she asked as she turned her back to the rangers to fully face Zordon.

"Recently, we unfortunately had to lose a sixth member of the ranger team. The green ranger's powers have become unstable and we risked losing them back into the hands of Rita. To prevent her from regaining them, he surrendered his powers to a fellow ranger." Zordon explained. A look of shock formed on the girl's face at the news.

"The green ranger? You mean they've been recovered?" she asked in reference to the green power coin, dragon dagger, and Dragonzord.

"Yes. The green ranger's power is now in possession of the red ranger." Zordon answered as he referred to the teen dressed in red, still leaning against the ledge of one of the control consoles.

She turned around to face Jason, who looked back at her. Her eyes drifted around to the other rangers taking in the news of them reclaiming the green ranger powers. "Remarkable…I see why Zordon chose you all to become Power Rangers." The comment made the rangers smile with pride, each one of them looking at each other in appreciation.

"However, the recent loss has been a difficult one. Perhaps, the loss of Tommy and the instability of the green ranger powers have led the rangers seeking to fill the gap." Zordon surmised.

Jason contemplated Zordon's theory. Losing Tommy had been a harsh blow to their team, and losing his powers had been hard on Tommy as well. Despite his friends' best efforts to reassure him that he'd made the right choice, he still blamed himself for not getting the green candle. Maybe their longing to have their friend and teammate back had reached out in their subconscious.

"We all miss him, but if anyone is going to take his place…well…we want it to be Tommy." Kimberly stated. She looked over to the girl, afraid she may have offended her. She bit her lower lip, a habit she'd developed as a child whenever she was nervous or worried. "No offense."

The girl shook her head in response. "I take no offense. It is understandable you'd feel that way. We've only just met, and this Tommy seems to be a very dear friend to you all."

"That is enough for now." Zordon interjected. "I am certain you all have more questions, but we should allow her a chance to rest."

He turned his eyes to her. "You've only just awoken and have already displayed a good deal of your power."

She shook her head in the affirmative, understanding Zordon's concern. "You're right. I also seem to be a bit out of practice with them. Typically, the transformation between forms did not require so much effort." She said, suddenly noticing the slight sensation of vertigo. She wasn't tired in the least, after having slept through several millennia. However, her display might have drawn Rita's attention, and in her current state, she would most likely be vulnerable if attacked.

Jason stood up and walked over to her. "Zordon's right. Sorry if we put you on the spot."

"Yeah, we sort of threw a lot of questions at you." Trini chimed in as a new thought crossed her mind. "We didn't even ask your name."

"Technically…I don't have one." the girl replied causing the rangers to look at her incredulously.

"How do you live for ten-thousand years and not have a name?" Zack asked skeptically, a look of disbelief etched on his face which she couldn't help but giggle at. Her hands quickly shot up to cover her mouth at her outburst, which made the rangers laugh in return at her. She dropped her hands and cleared her throat before speaking.

"I apologize. I did not intend for that. As for my name, as part of tradition and custom, when someone is shown to have fully manifested the Phoenix powers and taken into training, we give up our birth names and only are referred to as "Phoenix". It is our way of showing respect for it being granted to us."

"Man, that must get really confusing." Zack remarked imagining several Eltarians' all responding in unison at someone calling out the word "phoenix".

"No, not particularly." she responded, giving Zack a small, understanding smile. "Someone being born with the Phoenix powers is uncommon, and it is even rarer if it fully manifests if someone does have it."

"How rare precisely?" Billy asked, his intellectual curiosity piqued as he listened to her talk about her powers.

"Well…sometimes only one would be born with them, but will only show signs without the power fully manifesting. Occasionally, there would be times where we had as many as three or five people show signs, but only one or two would have their powers fully form. Other times, there may not be one for several thousand years." she explained as she recalled the teachings of her mentors about her powers.

"How many of you are still on Eltar?" asked Kim. She noticed a flash of what Kim could only describe as sadness enter into the other girl's eyes before a quick flash of anger replaced it, making her eyes glint with a hint of a fiery red. The girl blinked, instantly dissipating the heated spark in her eyes and returning them back to the glowing amber they originally were.

She simply shook her head "no" in response to Kim. "I am not sure." She replied as Kim wondered if her friends had also noticed the flare in the other girl's eyes like she had.

"Before I left Eltar, there were about six of us that had completed the training and were using our powers to serve our people." She paused momentarily, as if she were thinking something over. "When Zordon brought me with him here to Earth, there were only two of us left." She finally spoke after a brief moment of silence.

"Only two? What happened to the others?" Billy asked.

"Rita…" she answered, the tone of her face fully expressing the amount of disdain she had for the sorceress.

"Rita? Wha-" was all Jason managed to get out before a flame flared out from her, making the rangers jump back, surprising them as well as her.

"Whoa!" exclaimed Zack.

The girl closed her eyes, willing her power under control. After a few seconds, the flame faded away as she reopened her eyes. "I'm sorry. It seems my powers are a bit unstable." She apologized, moving herself back several steps from the rangers as a precaution.

"Phoenix, perhaps Alpha should perform a few tests on you to ensure your powers are not destabilizing from coming out of the spell." Zordon interjected, having observed the spontaneous flare up of her powers and now concerned that the spell may have had an unexpected side effect.

"Phoenix…why don't we call you by that?" Trini asked to their new ally, revisiting the subject of her not having a name. "It isn't an uncommon name, and you're already use to it." She said referencing the girl's earlier comment of being referred to as such.

Phoenix shook her head in the affirmative at the proposition. "That seems like a practical idea."

"Then it's nice to officially meet you, Phoenix." Said Trini as she took one of Phoenix's hands in both of hers, giving it a light squeeze in greeting, the other rangers following suit.

"And please, call me Billy." Billy commented, referring to her earlier occurrence of calling him by his full name of William.

"Yeah. Just Zack for me, if you don't mind." Zack chimed in, giving her a friendly smile.

"Um…Zordon?" said Kim as she walked up to their leader. "Now that Phoenix is awake, where is she going to stay?" Though she knew that the command center was one of the safest places they knew, and was more than well supplied in case of an emergency, it wasn't meant to be lived in.

"I understand your concern for her well-being, Kimberly, but for now she will remain here." He answered the pink ranger, then turned his eyes to Phoenix. "I apologize, old friend. I had not anticipated having to waken you so suddenly. However, I thought it best that you would be better suited to answering the rangers' questions about the dream."

Phoenix smiled to her old friend. "I understand, Zordon, and I'm glad you did." She turned to the rangers, considering the reason to have met them in both the dream and now real life. "I think it was time I was awakened."

"I agree, but for now, we should let Alpha do a full check on your physical health and the stability of your powers." Zordon responded.

"Right, and we should head out." said Jason. Despite that there were still some questions he wanted to ask, his mind was more at ease now than it had been for the last few weeks.

"Yeah, let's go guys." said Zack. "See ya, Nix." he directed at Phoenix.

The nickname made her cock her head to the side in curiosity at him. "Nix?" she asked.

"You'll get use to it." Zack replied, giving her a friendly smile and a wink that made the other rangers smile. They brought their wrists up and activated their communicators, teleporting home.


	3. Chapter 3 - Stargazing

Thank you to JPHBK for allowing me to borrow the concept of the window entry from "Reflections of Red and Pink".

Disclaimer: Power Rangers belongs to Saban. I own nothing other than the original character (Phoenix) and her powers.

* * *

Kim turned on to her side for the umpteenth time as she lay awake in her bed. She glanced up at her alarm clock on her bedside table to see it read 12:30 in the morning. Letting out an irritated groan, she kicked off her covers and sat up.

 _"This isn't working."_ Kim thought, running a hand through her hair. Typically, she would be asleep by now, but her mind refused to shut off for the night and let her rest. She stood up and smoothed down her pajamas, then walked over to the window in front of her bed. She turned the latch, and swung it open. Lifting herself onto the balls of her feet, she hoisted herself up and on to the window sill facing her backyard. She brought up her right foot to rest on the window sill, holding her leg close to her body, while her left foot dangled just above the floor of her bedroom.

She inhaled deeply, enjoying the night air. Her mind went over what happened earlier in the day, then everything she and her friends had been through in the last three short months since becoming Power Rangers. She watched the few cars that drove down the street, past the line of houses that sat behind hers. Then her eyes came to settle on a second-floor window of the house located directly behind hers, making a small smile form on her face.

"Hey, what are you thinking about?" a familiar male voice quietly called out from below the tree next to her window. She looked down to see a familiar masculine silhouette being illuminated by the moonlight, dressed in a red tank top, jeans, and white sneakers.

"Hey you." She replied in a voice low enough for Jason to hear, her smile growing wider.

"Hey." Was all he said in response, returning the smile. "Is it okay to come up?"

Kim shook her head in the affirmative, then watched as he quietly and expertly hauled himself up into the tree, finding the nooks and branches he'd climbed many times before. He hauled himself up and onto a broad and sturdy branch right outside her window, balancing himself on it and bringing him to her eye level.

"Hi" Jason said again, a smile plastered on his face from his perch in the tree before cautiously stepping onto the stretch of the roof below her dormer window. He carefully sat down beside the window, facing her and pulled his knees up to rest his arms on them.

"Hi." Kim replied. "Mom is asleep. She got home late from work today and went straight to bed."

"Then I'm not in danger of being chased off the roof." He quipped, making Kim roll her eyes at him. Even though Maddy Hart, Kim's mother, had known Jason and his parents since he was five-years-old, and knew she could trust both teens to be left alone together, they preferred to avoid alerting her to their late night meets to talk. It had become a routine they had started when Kim was eight-years-old and her parents arguments were practically a daily occurrence. Kim had started sneaking over the fence of their separated backyards to his room on a nightly basis during that time, his house becoming her sanctuary.

"I was wondering if I'd catch you tonight. I thought you'd be asleep by now." Jason said from his spot on the roof beside her window.

Kimberly shook her head "no". "Not having much luck getting to sleep. What about you?"

"Same." He replied. "I manage to fall asleep for a few minutes, but I keep waking back up. So, just decided to get up and try my luck to see if you were still awake."

"Did the dream come back?" Kim asked.

He shake his head in the negative before thinking back to the look on her face as he approached her house a few minutes ago. "You did look a little distracted. You didn't even hear me jump the fence or approach."

"Well, in all fairness, I'm pretty convinced you are part ninja." She teased, crinkling her nose at him. A quirk of hers that Jason found incredibly adorable whenever she did it.

"So, what were you thinking about?" he asked, shifting into his part of confidant.

"Everything." Kim simply said on a long exhale out. Jason just nodded his head in understanding.

"The last few weeks have been pretty crazy, huh?" he reflected, thinking over what the rangers had been through lately.

"Tell me about it." Kim answered. "We break Rita's spell to free Tommy and have him join us, only to lose him and his powers." She sighed, her eyes picking a spot in the distance of her backyard to focus on. "Now he's gone." She stated as Jason noticed the hurt enter her voice, his heart clenching at her crestfallen expression.

"Then that bizarre dream we all had, and now…Phoenix." She continued to vent. "It's just a lot to take in on a short amount of time."

Jason shook his head in the affirmative as he listened to her confide in him. "It is a little overwhelming when you think about it."

"Yeah." Kim replied, lifting her shoulders in a small shrug. "I trust Zordon, and I have a feeling that Phoenix isn't here to take Tommy's place, but…"

"It's too soon." Jason finished her thought.

"Right." Kim responded. She'd been thinking over Zordon's theory about why Phoenix was now with them and how they might have sought her out in their subconscious as they slept.

"It would be okay, though." Jason reassured her, breaking the silence that fell between them. "If Zordon brought her here to make her a ranger, we'd have a sixth again. She'd be part of the team."

"And I'm all for that. I am." Kim added. "Another ranger and an addition to the team would be amazing. It's just…" she hesitated not sure how to put the thought running through her head into words.

"Tommy's been through so much. If anyone deserves to become a ranger again, it's him…oh gosh, I sound horrible." Kim scolded herself, feeling like she was putting blame on Phoenix for something she didn't do. Guilt filled her as she fidgeted in her spot on the window sill, tucking a lock of her loose hair behind her ear.

Jason smiled gently at her. "No, you don't. You're just worried about a friend. I was thinking the same thing earlier."

"You were?" Kim asked, dropping her eyes to look at Jason.

"It's why I couldn't sleep." He confessed. He watched as his words seem to give her some sort of comfort and the tension slip away as her shoulders dropped.

"I'd bet the others have been thinking the same thing." Jason added, watching as Kim shook her head in understanding thinking about their mutual friends. "But it's like you said, Kim. We all trust Zordon. If he introduced Phoenix to us, it was for a good reason and he thinks she can help us."

"You're right." She responded, thinking about the young woman now back at the Command Center. "I do feel bad about us just leaving her behind."

"We didn't have much of a choice." Jason replied. "Alpha has to run those tests to make sure her powers are stable, and our parents would find it weird if one of us brought her home saying she needed a place to stay and explaining why."

"Yeah, I have a hard time as it is trying to come up with a decent excuse when we have to bail to fight Rita's latest ugly." Kim laughed thinking over the excuse she'd given her mother earlier that night after coming back from the Command Center. "Billy usually comes up with better ones."

"That makes two of us." Jason replied as he laughed too.

Kim placed a finger against her lips. "Shhh! You'll wake my mom." She giggled, dropping her finger.

"You started it!" he said quietly, playfully shoving her, making Kim giggle more. "I'm sure Zordon and Alpha will figure it out." Jason added after their laughter calmed down. He starred at her for a moment, a question floating around in the back of his head he'd been hesitant to ask.

"Speaking of Tommy…have you heard from him?" he finally asked and winced when he saw the smile fade away from Kim's face. Kim shook her head "no".

"Not yet." She said, letting out a long sigh. "Jase…it's been over a month since he left."

"I know, Kim." He said gently as he watched her from his spot beside her. She drew up her knees and wrapped her arms around them. "He's probably still processing everything with losing his powers."

"I know…I can't imagine what he's probably going through right now." Kim replied thinking of their mutual friend.

"But…" Jason interjected, reading the expression on her face indicating that there was something she wasn't saying.

"We're his friends. We're supposed to be there for him…for each other." She finished.

Jason placed a hand on her shoulder. "We are, Kim." He replied. "Give him time. He'll call when he's ready."

"I just wish…" she began.

"That he'd talk to you?" Jason finished her thought, a sense of irritation rising in him as he continued to watch his best friend. Tommy made it no mystery that he was enamored with Kimberly when he and Tommy competed against each other in the karate tournament over a month ago. Kim had her shared interest in the new guy in town as well, which had bothered Jason at the time. But now, Tommy was his friend…his brother. His friends' happiness meant more to him than his own, but to see the hurt on Kimberly's face over Tommy not even reaching out to her bothered him a great deal.

 _"He makes her happy._ _Or…made her happy?"_ To his knowledge, Kim and Tommy had never defined their relationship as boyfriend and girlfriend, if that's what they even were now.

 _"Oh, don't even go there, man."_ Jason mentally chastised himself. At some point during their time in fifth grade, he'd stopped seeing Kim as his "little sister", and began seeing her as something more than just his best friend. Part of him wanted to see where his new feelings for Kim could lead, but the other side was terrified of what it would do to their friendship.

Kim was an integral part of his life, and the thought of her not being in it for a second was unthinkable to him. _"I don't want to lose that. I can't lose that."_ But as much as he repeated that to himself, now, five years later, instead of his feelings of infatuation fading away, he felt the same feelings as strong as ever as he gazed at her figure sitting in the window.

"Reading my mind again?" Kim teased, breaking Jason out of his thoughts. He shrugged, giving her a half-smile. "Depends, was I right?"

Kim shook her head in the affirmative. "You're right." She dropped her left leg back to the inside of her window, leaning her head back against the window frame.

"Maybe he thinks he can't talk to me." Kim thought out loud.

"Kim…Tommy is crazy about you." Jason replied, trying to set her mind at ease. She dropped her head to look at him.

"You think so?" she asked.

"I'm positive." He answered.

"How are you so sure?" she asked hearing the conviction in his voice at the statement of their mutual friend's feelings for her.

"Because, he'd be insane not to be." Jason stated, giving her a look that made her face turn a light shade of pink.

Kim starred at Jason, his words stunning her into silence and her heart hammering wildly inside her chest. Her face must have reflected her shock, as she saw Jason smile at her emotional state. _"What does he mean by that?"_

"Jase…wha-" she began before Jason interrupted her.

"Kim, remember the karate tournament? When we first met Tommy?" he asked, purposely blocking her from asking him to explain what he meant. _"Please, don't ask."_ He almost let out of a sigh of relief when he saw her shake her head in the affirmative instead of re-attempting her question.

"Yes." Kim replied.

"Before I came out of the locker room to meet back up with you guys, Tommy approached me and asked about you." Jason responded.

Kim's brows furrowed together. "Really? Why?"

Jason couldn't help the short laugh that escaped from him at her response. "He wanted to know about the "pretty girl in pink" who was with me." He replied, recalling the question Tommy had asked him during their brief conversation in the locker room.

"And he wanted to know if…" Jason cut his sentence short as embarrassment settled into him.

"If…what?" Kim asked waiting for him to finish his sentence. Jason awkwardly cleared his throat, feeling his face turn a shade of red that probably rivaled the color of his ranger suit.

He brought a hand up to nervously rub his chin. "If…you were my…um…girlfriend." He finally managed to get out. Kim felt her eyes go wide, certain the blush that was on her face now matched his.

 _"He thought Jase and I were together?"_ Kim felt her heart flutter at the idea as her mind began to conjure up images of her and Jason. Quickly, she mentally scolded herself for thinking such things and pushed the mental images out of her head. _"Stop it! Jase and I are friends. Best friends! And there's Tommy."_

"U-um…what did you tell him?" Kim asked, finally finding her voice again.

"I told him we weren't. That we're just friends." Jason replied, managing to make his voice steady and clear.

 _"Just friends…"_ Kim felt a sharp pang of hurt grip at her heart at those words, before she once again pushed the feeling back down from wherever they had surfaced from.

"Best friends." Kim said correcting him, forcing a smile on her face to try and keep Jason from reading her inital reaction. It didn't work. He'd caught the momentary flash of hurt in her eyes, before she'd managed to cover it. He could always pick up on the smallest things about her that others managed to miss.

 _"I saw that."_ Jason thought to himself, but like Kim, he shut his mind from reading too much into the hurt he'd seen in her eyes. _"She's with Tommy."_ He reminded himself.

"Best friends." He said, going along with her correction. Silence fell over them, neither one sure what else to say.

"Hey." Jason said after a while, finally coming up with an idea. "Why don't we meet at the park tomorrow to train? It's been a few days since I started showing you that new kata."

Kim smiled at him, thankful for the change in subject, but shook her head "no". "I'd love to, Jase, but I can't. I'm going to be stuck here at home all day tomorrow."

"Why? What's going on?" Jason asked.

"I promised my mom that I'd help her clean out the attic tomorrow." She answered.

Jason raised an eyebrow in curiosity. "Is she getting rid of some old stuff?"

"She wants to renovate it into an extra bedroom, since it has those big windows facing the garden and the park." Kim explained. "And she's been toying around with the idea of having a guest room for when friends and family come to visit instead of having me give up my room."

Kim shrugged her shoulders. "So, she wants to clear it out so we can have a contractor come and price out how much all the work will cost."

"Well, what if I come over early tomorrow and help you?" Jason offered as he now found himself wanting to spend the day with her.

Her eyes lit up as his offer. "Seriously? You wouldn't mind?" Kim asked.

 _"Anything for you."_ He thought. "Sure. I'll call the guys in the morning and see if they want to come by and help."

Kim dropped her leg down, to lean forward and put her arms around Jason's neck, pulling him into a hug. "That would be great! Thanks, Jase."

He returned the embrace, giving her a light squeeze in affection. "It's nothing. Besides, it gives me the chance to see if I can find anything incriminating on you to tease you about." Kim pulled back far enough to give Jason a playful smack on his arm, causing him to laugh.

A thought formed in Jason's head. "Did your mom find a contractor?" he asked.

Kim shook her head "no". "I don't think so. She was going to start calling around tomorrow."

"Then, I'll ask my dad about it. They're friends, so he'd be more than happy to help out." Jason commented.

Kim gave him a look. "Have I told you how much I love you?" she asked. No matter how humble Jason was, it never failed to move her with how generous he was, not just with his friends, but with strangers as well.

"I love you too." Jason responded. "I'll ask my dad in the morning before I call the guys."

"I can call them." Kim insisted. "Don't worry about it."

"You'll already have your hands full with clearing the attic. I'll call them." Jason replied.

"Jason." She said.

"Kimberly." He said

They starred at each other for several moments before she rolled her eyes, and smiled at him in surrender. "Okay, okay. You call them."

Jason smiled in triumph before peaking in her window to see the alarm clock on her bedside table reading 1:30am. "It's late. I should go and let you sleep." _"I don't want to go."_

"No!" Kim quickly said, grabbing his arm. She bit her lip as she realized how loud she'd spoken, both of them holding their breath and listening closely for the footfalls of her mother. They let out a breath they'd both been holding after waiting several seconds, realizing no one was coming.

"Way to nearly blow our cover, Hart." Jason teased.

"Sorry!" She exclaimed quietly, stifling a giggle. "Don't go yet."

"It's late, Kim. And you have a lot to do tomorrow." Jason insisted, starting to move to get up to take his leave.

Kim gently tightened her grip on his arm, pulling him to sit back down. "Pleeease? Stay a little longer?"

Jason gave her a look, making Kim pout and give him her puppy dog eyes. Jason groaned at the look on her face, finding it too cute. "That's playing dirty, Hart."

"Then stay a little longer." She insisted.

Jason chuckled, finally hanging his head in defeat. "All right, I'll stay, but only for another thirty minutes."

"Deal." She consented.

"So…" Jason said as he looked at Kimberly.

"So…what?" she replied giving him a mocking smile.

Jason laughed at her response. "Mind if I come in for a little bit?" he asked gesturing to her room with a nod of his head.

"Actually, I'm thinking about calling the police and telling them that there is a strange boy on the roof outside my bedroom window." Kim replied, grinning at him, not moving from her spot on her window sill.

"Don't you hate it when that happens?" Jason quipped back, playing along and narrowing his eyes in mock annoyance.

"Totally the worst!" she responded. "Wait here." Kim said, letting go of his arm as Jason raised an eyebrow in curiosity.

Kim slid herself down from the window sill, dropping back into her room. Jason watched as she walked over to her dresser and pulled some clothes out before walking into her bathroom. She walked out a couple minutes later in a light pink tank top, denim shorts, and sneakers. She went over to her bed, dropping her pajamas onto it, and pulled off the soft pink throw blanket on it. She folded it up then walked back over to the window.

"Hold this." She said, holding the blanket out to him.

"What's up?" Jason asked as he took the blanket from her.

"You'll see." Was all she said in reply as she hoisted herself back on to the window sill, then gracefully swung a leg out, placing her foot on the stretch of roof below her window. She swung her other leg out next, fully exiting her room via the window. She crouched down as she stood on the roof of her house.

"Give." She said as she held out her hands to Jason to take the blanket back.

"What are you doing?" Jason asked as he handed the blanket back to her.

"Follow me." Kim answered as she moved on to the roof beside her bedroom window. Jason reached over to the window sill, pulling himself up and into a crouching position similar to Kim's, following her as she unfolded the blanket and set it down on the roof.

"You know, it's going to get dirty." Jason teased as he moved over to the side of the roof she was on.

Kim shrugged. "That's what washing machines are for." She replied as she grinned back at Jason before sitting down on the blanket, pulling her knees up against her and patted the spot next to her on the blanket.

Jason rolled his eyes at her, smiling back as he moved over to the spot she patted and laid down on the blanket next to her with his arms behind his head. Kim scooted down a little on the blanket, then laid down as well, staring up at the clear night sky.

"Look…there's Sagittarius." Said Jason.

"Where?" asked Kim as she scanned the stars to find the constellation.

"Right there." Jason replied, pulling his right arm from behind his head and pointing up at a group of stars. "See…there are the three stars that make up the bow. Just like yours."

"Oh! I see it now." She said, locating the cluster of stars in the sky as Jason dropped his arm back down to behind his head, a comfortable silence settling between them.

"Do you remember when we used to do this as kids when our families went camping together?" Kim asked, breaking the silence between them.

He smiled at the memory. "Yeah, we would lay down a blanket in the flatbed of my dad's truck and just stare up at the sky until our parents would call us for dinner or go to bed."

Kim felt his body tremble as he started to laugh. "What's so funny?" she asked looking up at him.

"I just remembered when you would complain to your mom and dad about not wanting to sleep in a tent on the ground." Jason answered.

Kim giggled as she pictured the memory in her mind. "Oh gosh…I was such a brat back then."

"Yeah, maybe a little." Jason teased, making Kim sit up, her mouth opened in mock hurt.

"Jason Lee Scott, you be nice!" she said, slapping his stomach.

Jason flinched slightly at the light slap to his stomach as he laughed at her. "And you, Kimberly Ann Hart, need to stop being so violent towards me when I tease you."

Kim leaned back on one elbow, crinkling her nose as if she were considering the idea. Finally, she shook her head in disagreement. "Nope. Never going to happen."

"Yeah, that's what I figured." Jason replied, a smile stretched across his face.

Kim scooted closer to him as she began to lay back down. Jason dropped his left arm to his side for her to use as a pillow as she shifted to lie against him. _"This is perfect."_

Jason's eyes roamed over the sky, content with the moment they shared together. _"This is perfect."_

"We should do this more often." Said Kim.

"What? Insult each other?" Jason teased.

Kim rolled her eyes, giving him a light slap on his arm, making him chuckle. "No. I meant watching the stars."

"I'd be up for that." He replied. Eventually, his eyes landed on the moon, which was in a waxing gibbous. His mind went to his dream and his fight with Goldar, then to Rita.

"What do you think she's plotting up there?" Jason asked.

Though her eyes were still scanning the stars above them, Kim didn't need to look up know what Jason's eyes were now observing.

"Nothing good…for us, Angel Grove, or the world." Kim replied.

"Yeah…" Jason responded. "Whatever it is, we'll stop her."

"Totally." Kim said. She tilted her head up a bit to look at the moon, her thoughts following his about what Rita might be up to now. "It's terrible how something so beautiful is also housing something so rotten."

"I'm sure if the moon had a say in it, it would boot Rita back to wherever dark hole of the universe she came from." Jason replied.

"If only. I'd love to see that." She responded.

"Me too, but I should be heading back before my parents notice I'm gone and your mom realizes you're not in bed." Jason said as he moved to sit back up.

Kim pouted as she sat up, allowing Jason to get up as well. "I wish you could stay longer."

"Me too, but I'll be here tomorrow, and we both need to get some sleep if we're going to be clearing out your attic. It'll probably take all day to move stuff out and sort through everything." He said as he moved off the blanket for Kim to roll up and carefully made is way over back to the tree outside her bedroom window.

"I know, you're right." Kim said as she followed behind him. She waited until he lowered himself onto the branch below her window before she tossed the blanket back into her room and slipped inside.

"Hey, I promise, we'll do this again." Jason said as she turned to face him.

"Tomorrow night?" she asked.

"Yeah, sure thing." He answered giving her a smile. "Goodnight, Kim."

"Goodnight, Jase." She replied, then watched as he descended quickly and gracefully, down the tree just as he had climbed it. He jumped down to the ground when he was close enough, looking back up at her with a wink.

"Show off." She said just loud enough for him to hear, smiling down at him.

With a wave to her, Jason made his way through her backyard and silently over the fence that separated their yards from each other. She watched as he crossed his backyard, climbed the steps to the upper deck, and over to the door that led into his bedroom. He opened the door, then turned once more back in her direction. After a moment, he stepped inside, closing the door behind him.

"Goodnight, Jason." Kim said quietly to herself, then reached out to grab the latch of her window, pulling it shut.

* * *

Jason peered through slit in the curtains of his bedroom window, watching as Kim pulled her window close for the night. He turned towards his bed, toeing off his shoes then removed his jeans and shirt. He grabbed a pair of sweats off the back of the chair sat in front of the desk in his room, and pulled them on. He turned down his covers, crawled underneath them, and into bed.

"Goodnight, Kim." He said out loud in a low voice, then turned on to his side, closed his eyes and fell into the first peaceful sleep he'd had in weeks.


	4. Chapter 4 - Memories and New Friends

Disclaimer: Power Rangers belongs to Saban. I own nothing other than Phoenix and the concept of her powers.

* * *

"So, what is your mom going to do with all this stuff, Kim?" Trini asked as she and Kim sorted through a moat of storage bins and boxes surrounding them. Jason and Zack sat on the floor of the Hart's attic on the other side of the pile of boxes and bins, cataloging what the foursome had already gone through.

Kim puffed out a breath of air, making strands of her hair flutter as she glanced around at their work so far. "Well…whatever we don't need or want, mom is going to sell at her firm's annual rummage sale next week."

"What about everything else?" asked Zack as he closed and shifted a box out of the way.

"We'll donate what we can, and everything that is staying will go out to my dad's old studio office above the garage." Kim replied, shifting her position to stretch out her legs.

"Oh my gosh…guys come look at this." Trini exclaimed as she lifted something out of the box she was currently sorting through.

"What is it, Trini?" Kim asked as she scooted closer to her as Jason and Zack stood up and wadded their way over the wall of boxes the group had created.

"I think it's a photo album." Trini answered as she sat a thick, leather-bound book with a metal clasp in her lap. Lifting the clasp, Trini flipped the album open.

"Oh my gosh…I haven't seen this in years." Said Kim, nostalgia clear in her voice.

"Who is the woman in that picture?" asked Jason, pointing to a yellowing black and white picture of a young woman sitting in the sand at what looked to be a beach, wearing a swimsuit reminiscent of the 1940s.

"That's my grandmother. My mom's mom." Kim answered as she traced the edges of the photo, a gentle smile forming on her face. "My parents named me after her."

"You look just like her." Said Jason, smiling at her as she looked up at him. Trini turned the pages as they looked through the pictures.

"Oh no." Trini laughed as she turned the page, her eyes landing on a photo much more recent than the older ones that made up most of the album.

"I remember this!" Kim exclaimed, now looking at the same picture as Trini. "This was from the Halloween when we were six."

"Oh man, can you believe our costumes?" said Zack as the four of them huddled together to look at the photograph. Jason was dressed as Han Solo, Zack was Batman, Kim was Princess Aurora from Sleeping Beauty, Trini was Princess Leia, and Billy was Doc Brown from Back to the Future.

"Look how small we all were." Jason commented.

"And you grew up to be such a strong and handsome young man." Zack joked, pinching Jason's cheeks.

Jason playfully pushed him away, laughing. "Knock it off, man!"

The group laughed at the boys' display of friendship as Trini closed the album and placed it into a box of things to keep.

"By the way, where is Billy?" Kim asked as Jason and Zacked both stood up to move back over to their previous spots on the floor."

"At the Command Center." Trini answered. "He said he wanted to help Alpha on the tests he's running on Phoenix and that he'd be here after they were done."

"I think our Main Brain has a thing for our new Fire Bird." Said Zack as a sly smile formed on his face.

"You think so?" Kim bemused at the thought of her clever friend and their newcomer being interested in each other.

"Absolutely." Zack replied. "When it comes to matters of the heart, the Zackman is your resident expert." He joked, causing his friends to roll their eyes in response and smile.

"He did seem rather fascinated by her. It's not every day you meet an actual phoenix." Trini commented as she pushed a completed bin over to Zack.

"Unless you're a Power Ranger." Jason added. As rangers, each of them had had their share of weird experiences since they're lives became anything but normal.

"True." Trini agreed as the four of them laughed. "Do you really think he likes her like that? We've only just met her, and Phoenix barely knows us."

"Yeah, maybe when Alpha and Zordon are done running tests on her, we could show Phoenix around Angel Grove." Jason suggested as he picked up another item from one of the storage bins.

"Hey, Kim, what's this?" Jason asked, holding up an elaborately decorated wooden box that was about the size of his hand.

"What's what?" Kim replied, bringing her head up from her own box to look over at him. Her eyes went wide as she noticed the decorated box in his hands.

"Oh my gosh…" said Kim, her voice just barely above a whisper. She stood up and hopped over the pile of boxes, over to Jason, kneeling down beside him. She gingerly took the box from Jason's hands. "This is my grandmother's music box."

"The one from the picture?" Trini asked.

"Yeah." Kim answered as she turned the box over in her hands, inspecting it. "She used to play it for me every night as a lullaby when I was a little girl."

Jason watched as Kim got lost in nostalgia, her eyes misting over as tears welled up in them. _"It means a lot to her."_

"Does it still work?" asked Zack, also looking over at the antique box in her hands.

"One way to find out." Kim replied as she set it down on the floor, and lifted the top. Disappointment covered her face when no music came from it.

"Oh…I forgot." Kim said in a mournful voice.

"What?" Jason asked, noting the look on her face and the tone in her voice.

"The part that turned the pins to play the music broke a long time ago." She answered, once more turning the box in her hands, noting a small hole on the side of it. "And the key to wind it is missing."

"We can show it to Billy." Trini suggested. "Maybe he can fix it."

"Yeah, and the key to it has to be around here somewhere." Zack interjected glancing around at their surroundings.

Kim starred at the box in her hands, considering their suggestions, then after a while, shook her head in the negative. "No…it's okay." Kim said. "We can give it away."

Trini's brows shot up at her words, leaning forward to look at her friend in pink from her spot behind the boxes. "Are you sure, Kim?"

"It means so much to you." Jason interjected, tilting his head down to catch Kim's eyes.

She was silent for a moment, pondering their objections. After a bit, she let out a small smile and nodded. "I'm sure. Besides, maybe it will make someone else happy even if it doesn't work anymore." Kim placed the antique box into one of the boxes of items to be given away when they heard footsteps climbing the stairs and Ms. Hart appeared at the top of the entryway.

"Hey kids, how's it going?" Maddy Hart asked, looking around at the mess of boxes and bins littering the floor. "It must be taking forever to get through all of this. Thank you for all the help."

"It's not so bad." Trini replied.

"Yeah, Trini and I just finished two more boxes for the guys to go through." Kim added.

"And we just finished boxing up four more. Two for the rummage sale, and two for storage in the garage." Said Zack as he patted the top of the box he just put down.

"Well, how about you kids take a break and wash up for lunch? I just put the food out on the patio." Ms. Hart suggested.

"Sounds good to me, I'm starved." Jason replied as he stood up and stretched out.

"Ms. Hart, you're speaking my language." Said Zack, giving the woman a charming smile as he stood up as well.

"Hey bro, let's take the boxes down first." Jason said, as he bent down to pick up two boxes for the sale, while Zack picked up the remaining two for storage. "You girls go ahead outside. We'll meet you after we take care of these." He added as he and Zack headed down the steps to the second floor, all three women trailing behind them.

"Man, I hope Billy gets here soon." Said Zack as he and Jason reached the bottom of the stairs to the main floor.

"He shouldn't be much longer." Jason replied as they dropped their boxes down in their respective piles near the front door. Once again, Jason's eyes settled on the wooden antique music box that had once belonged to Kim's grandmother. He reached down, picking up the box and opening its lid to inspect the mechanism responsible for playing the music. From the corner of his eyes, he saw Zack approach him.

"Man…I wish Kim would reconsider giving that up." Said Zack as he stood beside Jason, looking at the box in his friend's hand.

"Me too. It obviously means a lot to her." Jason replied as he continued to inspect the interior.

"Maybe there's a reason she doesn't want to hold on to it." Zack pondered.

"Could be…I just have a feeling she'll regret giving it away." said Jason.

"Well, I'm going to go wash up to eat." Zack replied, patting Jason on the shoulder.

"Right behind you, bro." Jason called after him, watching as Zack disappeared into the hallway leading towards the kitchen. He turned his attention back to the music box, thinking something over.

"Hey Jase, are you coming?" Trini asked, poking her head in from the hallway Zack had just disappeared down.

"Yeah, be right there." He replied, giving Trini a half-smile before she nodded and disappeared around the corner. Jason walked over to his gym bag, having brought it along with him on the chance of being able to get some training in if they finished their project early. He opened it and placed the music box inside, nestling it between his gi and towel to protect it. He zipped it back up, then turned to head down the hallway to the Hart's backyard where his friends were waiting for him.

* * *

"Okay, Phoenix, that was the last test." Said Billy, placing an elaborate scanning device onto a cart in the medical bay of the command center.

"Ai yi yi yi yi! I thought we'd never finish." Alpha exclaimed as he picked up the scanner Billy sat down. "Thanks for the help, Billy."

"You're welcome, Alpha." Billy replied as he started to put away all the devices they'd pulled out to measure and analyze Phoenix's powers and physical health.

"I'm going to put the data into the computer, while you finish up in here, Billy." The android said moving towards the entrance of the med bay. Before he stepped out, Alpha turned to Phoenix, who was handing something to Billy.

"Oh, Phoenix! I nearly forgot." Alpha made his way back towards her. "Zordon and I made this for you."

Alpha held out a robotic hand as Billy stood up between him and Phoenix. A crackle of amber energy flashed in Alpha's hand, then a small flame appeared then extinguished just as quickly as it had appeared, leaving a coin behind in the android's hand.

Billy and Phoenix's eyes both went wide as the small gold-toned object that Alpha summoned. "A power coin?" they both said in unison.

"Not exactly a power coin." Alpha began to explain as he placed it into Phoenix's hand. Though it resembled a power coin, instead of the raised details of the coin representing a pre-historic animal, the image was that of a bird with jagged edges to mimic fire and its wings open in flight was embossed on its face.

"Thank you, Alpha, but I cannot take on the ability of being a power ranger." Phoenix said as she looked from the coin in her hand to the android.

"As I said, it is not exactly a power coin." Alpha reiterated. "Zordon and I know your powers will not allow you to hold one of a power ranger. What we did was infuse this coin with a minor amount of your power and a minor amount of that of the Morphin Grid. This way, you will have the ability to enter the command center whenever you need."

Phoenix turned the coin over her in hand, then shook her head in understanding to Alpha. "Thank you, Alpha."

"You're welcome, Phoenix. Now, I should see to getting this data into the computer to be analyzed." Alpha said moving back to the entrance of the medical bay. "You and Billy come up when you're ready."

"We will, Alpha." Billy replied as Alpha walked out, leaving Billy and Phoenix alone together.

"Well, that was an unexpected turn of events." Billy commented turning his attention to Phoenix.

"Indeed, it was." Phoenix replied as she continued to look over the small object in her hands. Billy watched her with fascination as she played with the pseudo-power coin. Upon meeting Phoenix the previous day, he'd found her appearance to be rather intimidating. The fact that fire was the form her powers manifested in when she exercised them didn't help to improve his initial image. Now that he'd spent a good part of the morning and early afternoon with her, he was finding Phoenix to be rather captivating. _"She does have something rather captivating about her."_

"Phoenix?" Billy hesitantly called her by the name Trini had given her.

"Yes, Wil—Billy?" She corrected herself to use his nickname as she turned her glowing amber eyes from the small object in her hands to the young man in blue standing a few feet away from her.

Billy jumped slightly when her eyes landed on him. Despite that he was now more accustomed to being in Phoenix' presence, he still wasn't yet use to the intensity of her eyes. Seeing his reaction when she looked at him, her eyes softened and gave him a small smile.

 _"_ _I could swear, her eyes change colors."_ Billy thought to himself as he saw the intensity of her eyes soften to a warm golden color as she looked at him. Suddenly, Billy felt an odd creeping of nerves crash over him and his face felt warm as if he was blushing.

"Billy?" Phoenix repeated his name when he failed to speak. She tilted her head to the side in curiosity, noticing the reddish tint of his face.

"Um…" he finally said finding his voice again. "What did Alpha mean by your powers not being able to handle the ones of a ranger?"

"Well…" she started. "Unlike your powers, that are tied to the Morphin Grid and gives you and the other rangers your enhanced abilities, and enabled you all the wield the power weapons and zords, my powers are tied to my physical being."

"You certainly know a great deal about our powers." Billy commented in regards to Phoenix's knowledge of the ranger powers.

"I was with Zordon and Alpha when they discovered the power coins." She explained. "I was put under the sleeping spell not too long after Rita somehow managed to gain the green power coin."

Billy shook his head in the affirmative as he compartmentalized Phoenix's explanation. "So, how does your power being integrated to your physical being inhibit you from taking on that of a ranger?"

"Trying to unite my powers to the Morphin Grid would cause my powers to become unstable. The same would happen to the grid because they are not intended to work with each other in that capacity." She answered.

"What would happen if you merged it to the Morphin Grid?" Billy inquired, his curiosity piquing, urging him to get a better understanding of Phoenix and her abilities in comparison to his and his teammates.

"They would overload each other, resulting in me being unable to control my powers. Which, is dangerous with my powers if I ever lost control over them as it could either destroy me or the morphin grid along with the ranger powers…or…" Phoenix paused hoping Billy would understand her abrupt hesitation.

"Or…both?" Billy asked in an attempt to finish her thought.

"Correct." She replied.

Billy's brows shot up as he took in the information. "I see now why Zordon made the decision to hide you from Rita." Billy replied, reflecting on what the rangers' leader told them about placing Phoenix into a deep sleep beneath the command center. At that moment, six familiar beeps sounded off from his communicator.

"Alpha?" Billy guessed, speaking into the device on his wrist.

"Billy, would you mind bringing Phoenix to the main chamber?" the android's voice rang out from the other end.

"Sure, Alpha. We'll be right there." He answered before deactivating the device.

"What is that?" Phoenix asked indicating the device strapped to Billy's wrist.

"Oh, it's a communicator." Billy replied.

"Communicator?" she asked, furrowing her brows in confusion.

"It's a communication device that is linked to the command center to keep the rangers in contact with Zordon and Alpha, and them with us." Billy explained as he held up his wrist for Phoenix to observe the device. "It's also linked into the teleportation unit, so we can travel to and from here as needed. I-" Billy's words stuck in his throat as Phoenix took his hand in hers to gently turn his wrist to further inspect the device.

"I-I…invented it." He finally managed to get out. Phoenix looked up at him, a spark of fascination glimmered in her eyes.

"Really?" she asked with surprise in her voice. Billy simply shook his head in the affirmative, suddenly unable to find his voice. "How does it work?"

"U-um…" Billy said, stumbling over his words. "The…"set" button." He answered, gently pulling his hand out of Phoenix's. Turning his wrist over, he unclasped his communicator and handed it to Phoenix for her to look at. Her touch, for some reason, was making his mind go blank when he tried to find words to respond to her.

"You press it once to talk, twice for it to teleport." Billy explained the functions of the device, indicating the yellow button sitting below the face of his communicator that activated it.

"It's very clever." Phoenix commented, handing the communicator back to its owner.

"Thank you." Billy said, blushing at her compliment while strapping his communicator back on to his wrist. "Um…we should probably head down to Alpha."

She nodded in agreement. "Yes, we should." Turning on her heel, Phoenix headed towards the entrance, Billy close behind her.

"Billy?" Phoenix said as they stepped out of the medical bay and proceeded down the hall towards the main chamber.

"Yes?" he replied.

"I'm curious…why did you come to assist Alpha with the tests on me?" she asked.

"Um…well…" Billy started, then hesitated. His initial reason for volunteering his services was simply because Phoenix intrigued him. _"I can hardly tell her that."_

"Alpha is a friend, and I speculated he could use the assistance." He replied, thinking of a plausible excuse. "In addition, at the probability of something happening to Zordon or Alpha, I thought that at least one of the rangers' having a better understanding of your powers would be beneficial if you were ever in the position to need aid."

"Understandable." Phoenix replied to Billy's reasoning. "I appreciate you taking the precaution."

"You're a friend of Zordon and Alpha. That makes you a friend to us." Billy stated, smiling at Phoenix as they entered the main chamber.


	5. Chapter 5 - Almost Kiss

Disclaimer: Power Rangers belongs to Saban. I own nothing other than Phoenix and the concept of her powers.

* * *

"So, what were the results of Nix's tests?" Trini asked to Billy as they sat at a table in the juice bar watching Jason and Zack spar. Billy had finished up at the command center and met with his friends at Kim's house to help in clearing out the attic, and with his organized mind, they had finished up earlier than they'd planned.

"Her body is in the process of adjusting to her now conscious state, which is what has been causing the sporadic discharge of her powers." He answered, turning his attention from the duo on the mats to his table companion.

"Will she be okay?" Trini asked in response.

"Affirmative." He answered. "Zordon and Alpha are developing simulation exercises to facilitate her regaining full control of her powers. She should have full ascendency within a few days."

"That sounds great, but didn't you want to help out in developing the simulations?" Trini inquired, finding it rather odd that Billy had decided to forgo aiding Alpha and Zordon in developing the simulation.

"Well, I promised my assistance to you guys with clearing out Kim's attic. I didn't want to withdraw my commitment." He replied before taking a sip of his banana smoothie. "Also, I don't have a thorough comprehension of how Phoenix's power works or its full capability to devise a program that would adequately test them."

"I'm sure you could figure that out relatively easily, Billy." Trini replied. She was more than familiar with her friend's clever mind and his ability to comprehend complicated tasks that would leave most utterly lost.

"I have a print out of the test results locked in the safe back in my lab." Billy stated, confirming Trini's suspicion of him being interested in their new member's abilities. "I intend on reviewing them later. It would be beneficial to have a general idea of how Phoenix's powers in the event something were to happen to her or Alpha and Zordon are indisposed."

"Not to mention, she's pretty." Trini added, nudging her friend in his side. Billy nervously laughed in return, dropping his eyes to the cup in his hands.

"There is something rather…enchanting about her." He answered bashfully. "But we've only just met her. It would be preferable that she had a chance to become accustomed to her new surroundings and give her time to get to know us."

Trini shook her head in understanding. "Jason suggested that we should show her around Angel Grove."

"It would provide a good opportunity for her to get acquainted with all of us." Billy agreed assessing their mutual friend's idea.

"What would be a good opportunity?" asked Kim setting down two smoothies for Trini and herself as she took the seat next to Billy.

"Thanks Kim." Said Trini as she accepted the beverage. "We were talking about what Jase suggested with showing Phoenix around Angel Grove."

"I think it's a great idea." Kim responded. "She looked so confused when we met her, and it will be a major adjustment for her to get use to everything."

"Having friends would help in easing the possible shock she may experience from observing how the world has changed since she last saw it." Billy agreed.

"Why don't we make a day of it?" Trini suggested leaning forward in her seat, an excited smile on her face. "We can take her to see downtown, the beach, the school, then go over to the park and have a picnic by the lake."

* * *

Zack ducked a high kick from Jason, then shot back up to catch his other leg as Jason swung around to attempt a round kick. He released him, both men giving each other a grin of respect then dropped back into fighting stances. Zack moved first, throwing a punch which Jason dodged by side-stepping. He returned the blow by throwing a side kick that Zack blocked then followed up by spinning and throwing a back hand strike. Jason blocked it as they maneuvered around each other, both chuckling at each other as they moved. Jason threw a front kick, which Zack caught in his hand. Using his strength and Zack's hold as leverage, Jason propelled him other leg up in a crescent kick, which Zack evaded by releasing his hold on his friend and backing away. Jason landed on his feet and straightened up, both relaxing their stances and clasping hands in a sign of appreciation and friendship.

"You're getting better, bro." Jason remarked to his best friend, walking over to a bench to grab his towel.

"Hey, I have an awesome teacher, dude." Zack replied, patting Jason on the back before reaching down for his own towel.

Jason smiled at the compliment, turning his eyes to the juice bar and landing on their friends sitting at a table. The three were all smiles as they enthusiastically discussed something. His eyes came to rest on Kimberly who had burst into laughter at something Billy just said. Zack came to stand beside him, following his line of sight.

"How's she been doing?" Zack asked as he watched their mutual friend in pink.

"Hurt." Jason answered, not moving his gaze from her. "Wouldn't think that to look at her now though." Kim bent her head down to take a sip of her smoothie, and as if she felt his eyes on her, she turned her attention to glance over at him. Bringing her head up, Kim's smile widened as she waved at the two men from her seat.

"No word from Tommy yet?" Zack questioned as they both gave a gesture of their heads in response to her wave.

"None." Jason answered as he turned away to his gym bag, putting his towel away and picking up his water bottle. His eyes landed on the decorated wooden box he had stashed in his bag earlier. Quickly, he pulled his top of gi over it before Zack could notice.

"Have you heard anything from him?" Jason asked closing up his bag before turning to face Zack.

"Not a word, bro. Sorry." Zack replied zipping up his own bag.

Jason let out a frustrated groan. "It's been well over a month, man." He dropped his bag on to the floor near his feet, sitting down on the end of the bench it had occupied.

"He's probably still processing everything." Zack reasoned as he observed the look of frustration on Jason's face, sitting down next to him.

"I know…" Jason started, running a hand through his damp hair. "That's what I've been saying to Kim. I can't imagine what any of us would do if we lost our powers."

"But…" Zack interjected nudging him, hearing the subtle tone in his voice indicating that he was restraining himself from saying something.

"I don't know…" he responded trying to side step Zack's friendly prodding.

"C'mon, bro. Spill it." Zack urged.

Jason let out a long breath, leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees. "He made it no secret he was interested in Kim." Jason replied. Zack shook his head in the affirmative to the statement, well aware that Tommy had it bad for Kim since the second he laid eyes on her. Zack even encouraged him to ask her to the dance, which he had and earned himself a kiss in return for it.

"He went ahead to start something with her, and then just…" Jason paused. He was starting to sound bitter, which was something he honestly didn't want to be. As much as Tommy's actions, or lack-there-of, was bothering him, he still saw him as a friend. The last thing he wanted to do was speak poorly of a teammate, especially with what Tommy was currently dealing with.

"Bailed?" Zack said completing Jason's thought.

"Yeah…" Jason confirmed on a sigh. "With no word to us or Kim in over a month." Jason looked back over to her. Kim was currently all smiles in the company of her best friends, but underneath Jason knew there were silent questions she was asking herself about where Tommy was, how he was doing, and when would they hear from him.

"She doesn't deserve that, bro." Jason said, sitting up and pressing his back against the wall behind the bench they sat on.

Zack stole a glance at Kim, then dropped his gaze to the person sitting beside him. "Hey, why not ask Zordon to see if he can find Tommy?"

Jason stared straight ahead, considering Zack's proposal. Finally, he shook his head in the negative. "Nah, bro."

"Why not?" Zack asked, curious to why Jason would at least not try to ask their leader for help in locating their estranged teammate.

"Because, if Tommy's feelings for Kim are the real thing, he'll make the effort himself." Jason answered with resolve. "That's how it should be if you care about someone. Not because someone told you to."

Zack nodded, understanding his friend's point of view. He watched as Jason moved to stand, picking up his gym bag up off the floor. He caught Zack starring at him as if he was trying to read something about him.

"What?" Jason said with a laugh in his voice.

"You love Kim, don't you?" Zack bluntly stated. Jason furrowed his brow in confusion.

"Yeah, but you know that already. She's one of my best friends." Jason replied.

"Bro…come on." Zack said giving him a look as he stood up to stand beside him. Jason continued to stare at him in confusion before his eyebrows shot up and his eyes went wide understanding Zack's meaning.

"Um…I'm not sure." He replied, genuinely caught off-guard about what his feelings for the pink ranger might be. "Why do you ask?"

"Hey, I told you. Matters of the heart is the Zackman's specialty." Zack replied, giving Jason a playful smack on his stomach with the back of his hand, throwing his bag over his shoulder. Jason smirked, rolling his eyes at his friend.

"Seriously, bro." Zack began. "There's this look in your eyes whenever you look at Kim now. I've noticed it. Don't know if the others have."

Jason raised his brow at Zack, thinking over his words. He brought his gaze over to Kim, that odd feeling of his heart skipping a beat as he looked at her. When her eyes once again found him, he felt his pulse race as she signaled for them to come over.

"I don't know, man." He said after a bit of silence. "Maybe, I am."

Zack nodded. "I knew you had a thing for her back in junior high. Didn't know it lasted this long."

Jason turned to look at Zack. "You knew?"

"Hey, besides Kim, who else knows you as well?" Zack replied. "Plus, I'd never seen you get so worked up around a girl until then. We all thought it was weird since you and Kim have been friends since Kindergarten."

Jason shrugged, laughing at the memory. "We were, what? Ten-years-old? Up until then she was just Kim."

"She's still just Kim now, bro." Zack stated.

"Yeah…she is." He replied, once more looking over to her. "And at the same time, she's not."

Zack let out a low whistle realizing just how bad his best bud had it for their little pterodactyl. "Well…you're here. Would you…"

"No." Jason immediately answered knowing exactly where Zack was going with his inquiry. "For two reasons: I have no idea if she even sees me the same way, and I would never do that to Tommy."

"Tommy hasn't called." Zack pointed out.

"He will." Jason stated. "Besides, he makes her happy. That's all that matters to me." Jason placed a hand on Zack's shoulder. "If you guys are happy, I'm good."

Zack gave him a friendly slap on the back. "We know, Jase, but the same goes for us when it comes to you."

"I have you guys. I'm good." Jason replied, a genuine smile on his face.

"Alright, bro." Zack replied, the two clasping hands.

"Hey, Zack?" said Jason

"What's up?" Zack responded.

"Don't say anything to Kim, okay?" he asked.

"Yeah, you got it." Zack answered as the familiar beeping of Jason's communicator went off.

* * *

Kim turned her eyes up to the ceiling of her room as the loud buzz of a saw rang through. Jason's father had taken up the job of renovating the Hart's attic, and Kim's mom had happily accepted. It now had been several days into the construction and the constant noise from morning to early evening was starting to get to her.

"Jase?" Kim said to her study companion, who looked up from his homework as he was seated at her desk. "They are working on the attic, right? Not trying to make the ceiling of my bedroom cave in on me?"

"Oh, that reminds me, you might want to move about three feet to your right." Jason teased, giving her a playful smirk.

Kim rolled her eyes. "Ha, ha. Very funny."

"Knock, knock." Said Mr. Scott as he knocked on the open door to Kim's room. "Hi, Kim.."

"Hi, Mr. Scott." Kim replied giving Jason's father a smile.

"Sorry to interrupt your studies, but I need to borrow my son for a little bit." He said turning his attention from the girl sitting on her bed, surrounded by papers and textbooks to his son. "Mind giving us old-timers a hand with a few tasks?"

"You're not that old, dad." Jason replied, laughing at his father. "Sure thing, I'll be right up." His father nodded, then with a wave to Kim, disappeared into the hallway.

"Be right back, Kim." Jason said as he set his notebook down on Kim's desk.

"Okay." She replied, smiling at him as he exited the room. She stood up and stretched out, deciding to take a break herself. She walked out of her room and down into the kitchen.

"Hi, honey." Ms. Hart greeted her daughter.

"Hey, mom." Kim replied, walking over to her and giving the older woman a kiss on her cheek before going over to the refrigerator, opening it, and grabbing a bottle of water.

"Sorry about all of the noise, sweetie." Said Ms. Hart as she opened a cabinet and started pulling cups out. "You know, you can go to a friend's house or to the library to study instead of keeping me company. It must be pretty distracting with all the activity upstairs."

Kim shrugged as she watched her mom move about the kitchen. "It's a little distracting, but I can deal. Plus, Jason has been here during all of it to keep me company."

Ms. Hart smiled at her daughter. "Well, if you change your mind, let me know."

"Speaking of friends, mom. Can I ask you something?" Kim asked, a thought crossing her mind.

"Anything, sweetie." Ms. Hart replied.

"Well…there is this new girl at school who just moved here on a…study abroad program." Kim fibbed. "But her host family fell through, and I really would like to help her out."

"Kimberly, are you suggesting we host her stay?" Ms. Hart asked incredulously.

"I know it's sudden, but she doesn't have anywhere else to stay." Kim replied, clasping her hands together over her chest.

"Honey, we hardly have room for her here." Ms. Hart responded to her daughter's plea.

"Well…I thought the timing was perfect seeing as we're fixing up the attic into a spare bedroom." Kim rebutted hoping her mother would yield.

"Kimberly Ann…" Ms. Hart replied.

"Please, mom?" Kim pleaded, biting her lower lip in anticipation of her mother's response.

The older woman let out a sign of resignation. "I want to meet her first. Then I'll decide." Kim squealed in response as she bounced across to her mother to hug her.

* * *

"Anyone home?" Kim called out from the bottom of the steps leading up to the attic.

"Up here, Kim." Jason's voice floated down to her. As she reached the top, she didn't see any of the other workers.

"Where is everyone?" Kim asked, setting down a tray of drinks she'd brought up on a sawhorse., her back towards Jason.

"Dad and a few of the guys had to run out to the hardware store to get a few parts. The others went out to get some air." Jason replied.

"Oh, well, mom wanted me to bring up something for you guys to drink…" Kim was stunned into silence as she spun around to see a shirtless Jason standing at the opposite end of the attic hanging a piece of drywall. He'd shed his shirt in an attempt to offset the absurd heat that currently settled in the attic.

"Thank,s Kim." Jason replied, turning his head to smile at her over is shoulder.

"Sure." Was all she got out suddenly feeling really embarrassed. _"I've seen him without a shirt hundreds of times! What's with me all of a sudden?"_

"Kim? You feel okay?" Jason asked as he walked over to her, seeing her face flushed.

"Uh huh." Kim replied oddly. _"Okay, stop it! This is Jason. My Jason. The same one I've known since we were five-years-old."_ She snapped out of her thoughts feeling Jason's hand on her forehead, his proximity feeling much too close for her current comfort level.

"You don't seem to have a fever, but your face is flushed." He commented.

"It's just the heat." Kim managed to answer, using the state of the attic as her excuse.

"Probably. Go ahead and head back down, I'll follow in a bit." He replied picking up one of the cups and downing the liquid inside.

"No, it's fine. I'm fine." Kim insisted as she glanced around the attic.

"Okay, if you're sure." Jason answered, setting the cup down as he watched her wander about the space. "What do you think so far?"

"You work fast." She replied, remembering the space being nothing more than bare wooden beams and a floor not too long ago.

"It didn't need that much done to it. Made everything go a lot faster." He replied observing the space. "I think your mom will be happy with it when everything is done."

"Speaking of mom, I was just talking to her in the kitchen." Kim replied turning to face Jason, her nervousness temporarily forgotten as enthusiasm took its place.

"About what?" he asked.

"Well, I told her about Phoenix." She answered. "Not everything." She quickly interjected when Jason gave her a look that asked if she'd left out certain details.

"What did you tell her?" he probed further, curious to what Kim had come up with to tell her mother.

"That she's here studying abroad and needs a family to host her." Kim replied. "She's been at the command center for several days. I just really want to help her out."

 _"Totally like her."_ Jason couldn't help the smile that made its way on to his face at both Kim's fib and her caring nature. "That's great of you, Kim. Where is she going to stay?"

"Right here." Kim answered as she held her arms out indicating the room they were standing in.

Jason chuckled looking around the room. "Good thing your mom wanted this space turned into a spare room." He nodded his head in the direction of the wall he'd been working on. "Want to give it a shot?"

He well aware that Kim knew her way around tools from all the projects that they'd volunteered for at school and in their community, it didn't stop him from occasionally teasing her. She glanced over to the piece of drywall and the drill sitting nearby that he'd put down. She bit her lip, looking over to him.

"Sure." Kim replied smiling at him then picked up the drill and a screw as Jason measured and marked where it was supposed to go in before placing the slab up against the wooden studs as Kim moved to stand between him at the wall.

"Now, remember, the drill goes into the wall, not my hand." He teased from his spot behind her.

"I make no promises, Scott." Kim quipped back, gently elbowing him in his stomach. She reached up and placed the drill tip against the mark he'd made, driving it in to make a guiding hole before driving the screw in place next.

Jason dropped his hands and stepped back observing her work. "Eh…not bad." He teased.

"Ha, ha." Kim replied stepping back, her back brushing against his chest. She turned to face him and a second wave of nerves crashed over her as they both noticed their close proximity to each other.

"U-um…" Kim stuttered taking a small step back only for Jason to counter her movement with a step towards her. "I should probably go back down…homework."

"Yeah…" Jason said in a low, husky voice that made a shiver run down Kim spine. He placed a hand on the drill she was holding, gently forcing her hand down and out of the way, unaware that both of them were moving their heads closer to each other.

"Jase…" Kim said, her voice barely a whisper as they both looked down at each other's lips, their breath mingling together as the space between them narrowed.

"Hmm?" he replied, tilting his head towards her as Kim began to raise herself up on the tips of her toes. The sudden pound of something hitting the floor just outside of door leading up to the attic startled the two teens out of the haze they'd fallen in to and jumped away from each other, both turning as red as Jason's ranger suit as they realized what almost happened.

"Oh, hey kids." Mr. Scott said as he reached the top of the steps. Jason was faced away from Kim, picking up another screw as Kim suddenly found the drywall in front of her incredibly fascinating.

"Hey, dad." Jason replied, glancing over to his father before moving back over to the wall he'd been working on.

"You're still hanging that up?" Mr. Scott asked as he entered the space and walked over towards the two teens.

"It's my fault, Mr. Scott." Kim said as she moved away from the wall for Jason to work on. "I came up to see what was taking him so long to come back down and distracted him."

"I was just about to put her to work." Jason joked, stealing a glance at Kim. She immediately looked away as he saw the blush on her face deepen as their eyes met. Guilt crashed over him as he reflected on what almost transpired between them. _"She's your best friend, you idiot! So is Tommy. Don't you dare even go there with her."_

Mr. Scott laughed at the two, unaware of the events that had happened a mere few seconds ago. "Well, why don't you both head down? You two still have homework to do and looks like the heat up here is getting to the both of you. You're both flushed."

 _"You have no idea."_ Kim thought. "Yeah, it is pretty warm up here. So, um…I'm going to head back down." She waved to the two men, then made her way over to the steps and headed down.

"Be right there, Kim." Jason said to her retreating back as he reached for his shirt and tugged it back on. "I should get back to my homework."

"Go on, Jase." Mr. Scott replied, patting him on the back. "I'll come get you in an hour and we'll head home."

Jason nodded his head. "Sure, dad." He made his way down the stairs, heading towards Kim's room as he heard the Hart's phone ring.

"Hello?" He heard Kim's voice ring out as he approached her room.

"Hi, Tommy." She said into the phone, her eyes meeting Jason's as he appeared in the doorway.


	6. Chapter 6 - Part of the Family

AN: Okay…wasn't having much luck trying to write this chapter or chapter 7, so just tried to write something. Quite frankly, I think this chapter is "Bleh".

Thanks to everyone who left reviews. Always a great feeling to know someone enjoys your work.

To Crash: The music box will come back into play later on down the line, but it won't be until after Kim leaves for Florida in the MMPR canon timeline.

Disclaimer: Power Rangers belongs to Saban. I own nothing other than Phoenix and the concept of her powers.

* * *

"What!?" Trini exclaimed uncharacteristically of her usual peaceful nature. She fell onto the bench outside of the Youth Center. It was an early Saturday morning, and the rangers had arranged to meet up outside of the Juice Bar before heading to the command center to take Phoenix on a tour of Angel Grove.

"We almost kissed." Kim reiterated to her friend as she fell down next to her on the bench. It was now three days after the incident occurred. Neither she or Jason had brought it up after Tommy's call, both concentrating on their homework in silence until Mr. Scott had come down to get Jason to head home that night.

"I had no idea you even felt that way for Jase." Trini replied, finally recovering from the shock of Kim's news.

"Neither did I." The scenario kept replaying in Kim's head and she desperately needed to talk to her girl best friend about it.

"What happened after Jason's dad came in?" Trini asked.

"Nothing. I left to go back down to my room, and then Tommy called just as Jase was coming in." Kim answered, slumping in her seat as guilt rose up in her. "Of all the times for him to finally call."

"Wow…" Trini replied, straightening up in her spot next to Kim at the mention of their mutual friend and former teammate finally contacting one of them. "What did Tommy say?"

Kim sighed, running a hand through her hair as she shifted her position to face Trini. "That he misses us, and that he's sorry it took so long to call."

"Did he say if he is coming back?" Trini asked, shifting her position to match Kim's.

"No." Kim replied dropping her head to look at her hands in her lap, playing with a ring she had on one of her fingers. "He said that right now, it's too hard for him to be around us. Add in Rita's attacks and him not being to do anything to help, he said it was too much."

Trini nodded, understanding Tommy's feelings. She missed her friend as much as the others did, but knew that the bond between Tommy and Kimberly was different.

"And what did he say about what's going on between you two?" Trini posed the question to Kim now that something seemed to be developing between two of her best friends.

Kimberly blew through her cheeks, fluttering the strands of hair that fell in her eyes. "That he shouldn't have taken off the way that he did, and to give him time."

Trini leaned down in an attempt to meet Kim's eyes, sensing her somber mood. "Kim? You okay?"

"I don't know, Trini." She answered, tucking her hair behind her ear. "I feel so confused."

"Because of what happened with Jason?" Trini asked. Kim simply shook her head in the affirmative in response. "Are you upset with Tommy for leaving?"

Kim remained silent, pondering the question. "No." she replied. "Maybe I was a little bit at first, but after talking to him, it all disappeared."

"Maybe that's all the "almost kiss" was with Jason." Trini suggested listening to her friend. "A moment of vulnerability with someone who you are close and comfortable with."

"Do you think so?" Kim asked bringing her head up to look at Trini directly.

Trini placed her hands over Kim's in a sign of comfort. "You and Jase have been friends for a long time and known each other for ten years. It's not unusual to seek comfort in someone you're that close with, and it wasn't intentional."

Kim nodded, listening to her friend's reasoning. "Maybe you're right."

"Do you have feelings for Jason?" Trini inquired as Kim once again fell silent to think over her friend's question.

"I don't know." She answered honestly. "I love Jase, but it's always been a friendship kind of love. I'm not sure if I see him as…more."

"And what about how you feel for Tommy?" Trini countered back.

"I like Tommy." Kim answered immediately. "He's a friend, but it's not the kind of friendship like the one between Jase and me."

"Just a friend?" Trini asked.

"I'm not sure." Kim stated changing her position to fully face Trini. "He kissed me after asking me to the dance, and we went on a few dates before he left. We haven't really seen where things could go between us."

"Do you want to?" Trini responded.

"Yeah, I do." Kim replied. "With Tommy, if it never works out, I think we could at least still be friends."

"Where as with Jason, you're risking ten years of a close friendship if you two tried and didn't work." Trini responded, giving voice to the same reasoning in Kim's head.

"Exactly." Kim replied.

"See where things go with Tommy." Trini stated giving Kim's hands a gentle squeeze.

"He's not here." Kim countered.

"He'll come back." Trini replied.

"How do you know?" Kim asked.

"Because, if Tommy's feeling for you are real, he'll come back." Trini responded.

"What about Jason? What if we really messed up our friendship?" Kim replied, her distress and worry switching targets.

Trini gave her a gentle smile, seeing the concern on Kim's face. "Jason loves you and you know him. He's not going anywhere, and he'd tell you if he was."

Kim smiled and leaned in to pull her friend into a hug. "Thanks, Trini."

"You're welcome, Kim." She replied returning the hug. A blur of red and black caught her eyes and looked over to see Jason and Zack heading towards them from the park. "The guys are here."

Kim pulled back and turned to see their two friends approaching. They both stood up from the bench and walked over to meet them.

* * *

"Back up a second, you did what?" said Zack as he halted his steps forward. He and Jason were walking through the park heading towards the Youth Center to meet up with Trini and Kimberly.

"We almost kissed." Jason repeated to his walking companion. "I don't even know how we got there."

"What exactly happened?" asked Zack.

"We were in her room doing homework when my dad came and asked me to give him a hand with the work in the attic." He recounted, going over everything that occurred before the "almost kiss" with Kim. "I told her I'd be right back, and went to help. She comes up a little later, tells me about having Phoenix stay with her, then…THAT happened."

"Oh man." Replied Zack as he processed the information continuing on their way through the park.

"I know, bro." Jason responded. "I don't know what I was thinking."

"Well, how did Kim take it? Was she upset?" Zack inquired as they took one of the branching pathways.

Jason brought up a hand to rub the back of his neck. "No. She didn't even say anything afterwards about it. We were both pretty embarrassed."

"You guys haven't talked about it at all?" Zack asked taken back that his two friends had yet to address the situation.

"Not yet." Jason replied. "After dad got back, I headed back down to Kim's room and Tommy called."

Zack winced at the mention of their friend and former teammate's timing. "Ouch."

"Yeah, tell me about it." He answered putting his hands in his pockets, a new wave of guilt rising in him. _"I said I wouldn't do that to him."_ Jason tilted his head back towards the sky, letting out a frustrated sigh.

Upon seeing his friend's distress, Zack placed a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, come on, man. It's not like you did it intentionally. It just happened."

"It shouldn't have happened in the first place." Jason countered. "I don't want to confuse her and I can't stand the idea of betraying Tommy like that."

"Hey, man, nothing happened." Zack responded, giving Jason a reassuring squeeze on his shoulder before dropping his hand and putting it in his pocket. "Don't beat yourself up over it, and talk to Kim. Clear the air."

"If she'll even talk to me. After we were back in her room, we didn't say a word to each other until dad and I left." Jason replied as they walked off the path and onto the grass leading up a hill.

"Like you said, you both were embarrassed. She probably didn't know what to say." Zack countered. "You two have been friends since forever, she's not going to write you off over something like this. That's not Kim."

"Yeah, you're right." Jason replied giving Zack a pat on the back. "Thanks, bro."

Zack returned the gesture. "Don't mention it." They passed over the crest of the hill and onto the sidewalk of the Youth Center to see Kim and Trini sitting on a bench. The pair of girls stood up and started to approach them.

"Hey guys." Said Kim.

"Hi girls." Replied Jason as he and Kim locked eyes with each other.

"You girls ready to go?" Zack asked as he looked between them.

"Think so." Trini answered, then glanced around. "Where's Billy?"

"Already at the command center. He wanted to check in on Nix and see how her control has been progressing with the training simulations." Zack replied.

"Then we should head over." Trini stated lifting her wrist that was adorned with her communicator.

"Hang on." Said Jason, whose eyes were still on Kim. "Kim, can I talk to you really quick?"

"Um…sure, Jase." She replied, then they broke away from Trini and Zack heading back over towards the bench, their friends exchanging glances to each other as they walked away.

"Is something wrong?" Kim asked once they were out of earshot.

"I just wanted to make sure we were okay after what happened a few days ago." Jason answered.

"I guess we did kind of leave everything up in the air and awkward, didn't we?" She responded, biting her lip.

"Yeah, we did." He replied. "I'm really sorry, Kim. I shouldn't have done that and with everything going on with Tommy, the last thing I wanted to do is confuse you."

Kim smiled gently at Jason as he watched her take his hand in hers. "You have nothing to apologize about, Jason."

"What about—"he started.

"It was both of us, and it wasn't intentional." She interjected trying to reassure him everything was okay. "Let's just forget it happened and move on."

"So…we're okay?" he asked.

"Yes, we're okay." Kim answered. She wrapped her arms around Jason's neck, pulling him into a hug as his arms found their way around her waist.

"I love you, Jase." Kim whispered into his hair as they held each other.

"I love you too, Kim." Said Jason, gently squeezing her in the embrace before the untangled from each other.

"Come on, Zack and Trini are waiting for us. So are Billy and Phoenix." Kim stated, taking Jason by the hand and leading them back to their waiting friends.

* * *

"Looks like they resolved whatever they needed to talk about." said Trini as she and Zack watched their two friends standing a few feet away.

"I guess so." Zack replied.

"He/she told you." Zack and Trini said at the same time.

"When did she tell you?" asked Zack.

"While we were waiting for you two to get here." Trini answered. "When did he?"

"On the way over." Zack replied.

"What are you two talking about?" Kim asked as she and Jason reached them.

"Nothing." They said in unison, causing them to laugh while Kim and Jason both looked at their friends with curiosity.

"Okay, you guys ready to go?" asked Jason.

"All set." Replied Zack coming down from his burst of laughter.

"Then let's go." Jason responded, and with a quick check to make sure they were clear, the foursome teleported away.

* * *

"Okay, Nix." Said Billy as he moved to stand on the side of the current exercise simulation he and Alpha were running for Phoenix. "That was the last exercise."

"It looks like you've regained full control over your powers." Alpha stated as he shut off the simulation.

"Thank you for taking the time to help me do so." Nix responded.

"Aw shucks, it was nothing." Alpha replied, the android's bashfulness making her and Billy smile.

"You as well, Billy." Nix faced him. "You have been taking time between your ranger duties and other responsibility to assist with these exercises."

"Oh, it's nothing." Billy replied. "I've enjoyed the time we've spend together and it has given me a better chance to understand you and your powers."

"It shows." Nix stated. "I seem to have a better control of my powers than I did before."

The smile on Billy's face widened at her compliment. "Well, once I understood how your powers work and how you use them, I tailored the simulations to accommodate you accordingly."

"Hi Billy, hi Nix." Kimberly called out as they entered the simulation room of the command center. The rangers had taken to using entrances over directly teleporting in for Nix's sake.

"Hi guys." Billy returned to his friends as they entered. It's okay to teleport in now. Nix has fully re-mastered her abilities.

"I apologize for being an inconvenience all this time." Nix directed to the rangers. "Billy has been integral to my training process."

Billy blushed at Nix's words as he pushed up his glasses. "I'm glad to have helped."

"Oh! Rangers! How nice to see you all." Alpha exclaimed as he re-entered the simulation room.

"Hi Alpha." Four voices rang out in unison.

"Speaking of teleporting." Billy said turning to Nix. "I have something for you, Phoenix."

"For me?" she inquired, her brows raising in mild surprise.

"Follow me." Billy replied, leading the group out of the simulation room towards the main chamber.

"Hi Zordon." The four rangers greeted their leader and mentor.

"Rangers! Good to see you all." He returned the greeting. "What brings you all here this morning?"

"We wanted to check in on Phoenix." Trini answered. "And now that her powers are under control, we wanted to take her to see Angel Grove."

"That's very considerate of you all." Zordon replied. "I believe it will do her good to get out for a while."

"That's what we're here for!" Zack exclaimed, his arms out in a showman-like manner.

"But before anything else." Billy interjected. He walked over to one of the control panels and picked up a small rectangular box. "I made thing for you."

Billy walked back over to Nix, handing her the box. She accepted the small, black, rectangular box from Billy, then looked up at him seeming to be confused.

"Open it." Said Billy with a nod of his head to box in her hands. With a glance around to the other rangers, Nix looked down to the object in her hands and lifted the lid, the object within making the rangers smile.

"A communicator?" Nix asked rhetorically. The device resembled that of the rangers with an amber color within the grooves of the bands.

"You were quite fascinated with mine, so I thought you would appreciate one of your own." Billy stated as Nix traced the device with her finger tips. "And now it also serves as a proficient way to celebrate your first day seeing Angel Grove."

"It's also a bit of a "rite of passage" with us." Jason added.

"Yeah, it means you're officially stuck with us." Zack remarked, causing everyone to laugh.

"Here, let me." Said Billy as he took the box from Nix's hands and lifted the device out of it. Taking Nix's left hand, he placed the communicator on her wrist, and closed the clasp.

"There we go." Billy remarked as he looked up from Nix's hand. His eyes went wide to see a light blush tinting Phoenix's cheeks. The other rangers noticed the exchange and looked to each other, each one poorly managing to stifle the grins on their faces.

"Wait." Trini spoke up. "Phoenix doesn't possess a power coin. How is she going to teleport here if we take her out?"

Trini's question brought Billy back to the events in front of him. "I guess we forgot to tell you all. Zordon and Alpha created something like an "Entry Coin" for Phoenix."

"Entry coin?" Jason asked, his arms crossed over his chest, leaning against the ledge of the computer.

"Right." Billy confirmed, then looked over to Phoenix. "Care to show them?"

Nix moved around Billy to stand before the other rangers. Holding out her hand, she summoned the coin into her palm. Each of the rangers glanced between each other and the coin in Nix's hand.

Trini picked up the small object from Nix's hand, turning it over in hers. "This looks like a power coin."

"It resembles one, but doesn't perform the same function." Billy stated as Trini traced the Phoenix emblem of the coin.

"What do you mean "doesn't perform the same function"?" asked Zack as Trini handed the coin to him.

"Well, the simplest explanation would be, my powers are tied to my being, not the Morphin Grid. Due to that difference and the nature of my powers, trying to merge them with the Grid would be dangerous." Nix explained as they continued to pass the object to each other.

"Dangerous how?" asked Kim.

"It would make both my power and the Morphin Grid unstable and overload each other." Nix answered. "Which, in turn, could kill me and make you all either lose your powers, or destroy you as well."

Four pairs of eyebrows shot up as Phoenix explained the purpose for the Entry coin.

"So, you couldn't become a ranger?" Jason asked as he returned the coin to Nix.

She shook her head in negative. "Afraid not. Thus why Zordon and Alpha created this entry coin."

"It combines a minor amount of power from the Morphin Grid and Phoenix's powers to allow her entry to the command center." Alpha explained further.

"Well, if Phoenix now has a way to enter the command center, that means she doesn't have to stay here, right?" Kim inquired as she processed the new information.

"That is correct, Kimberly." Alpha answered the pink ranger. "Phoenix is now able to come and go as she pleases."

"In that case, I have a favor to ask." Kim looked up to Zordon. "Zordon, I'd like for Phoenix to come stay with me."

"That is very kind of you, Kimberly." Zordon replied as he gave the pink ranger an appreciative look. "If Phoenix wishes to accept, then I have no objections."

Kim smiled with excitement as she brought her gaze down to Phoenix. "What do you say, Nix?" Kim asked giving her a light tap on her arm. "How would you like to stay with me?"

"Uh…" Nix replied as she looked between Kim and Zordon. "I don't know. Are you sure?"

"Yes." Kim answered taking one of Phoenix's hands in hers. "I think it would be a lot of fun to have you."

Nix gave Kim a gentle smile at her thoughtful gesture. "Then…alright."

Kim jumped at Nix's acceptance, making her friends and teammates laugh at her giddiness. "This is going to be great, Nix."

"Now that Phoenix will be residing with Kimberly, it would be wise to have her attend school with you all as well." Zordon commented looking to his rangers.

"Won't that be a little awkward for her?" asked Zack. "An Eltarian attending high school with teenagers from Earth?"

"Despite her age, Phoenix can physically pass as a human adolescent." Zordon stated. "Having her attend school with all of you will avoid suspicion on her as well as all of you."

"I'm not sure I understand what this "high school" is." Nix commented looking at the rangers in confusion about the subject of discussion.

"Don't worry." Trini replied placing a reassuring hand on Phoenix's arm. "We'll show you. That way you won't have anything to worry about."

"Yeah." Jason added. "We'll be there with you to help with everything."

Nix shook her head in the affirmative. "I'm sure it will be fine with all of you to help."

"And it will be fun." Said Zack as he put an arm around Nix. "On that note, we should head out. We have a full day of dragging you around Angel Grove."

"Before we move ahead with our scheduled activities, we should assist Phoenix in obtaining attire that would be less conspicuous." Billy posed to the group.

"Trini?" Kim said looking over to her friend.

"He said we should probably find clothes for Phoenix that won't make her stand out." Trini translated for the group. Everyone turned their attention to the armor Nix was still wearing.

"I suppose it would be a wise choice to avoid suspicion." Nix commented as she observed her appearance in comparison to the others.

"I believe I can be of major help on that subject." Kim replied, not hiding her enthusiasm at the prospect of taking Phoenix on a shopping trip.

"Of course." The other four rangers said in unison, laughing at how Kim perked up at the thought of shopping.

"I'll go with you, Kim." Trini offered as she looked Phoenix over. "We'll stop over at my house first. I think Nix will be able to fit some of my clothes."

"Well, you girls have fun." Said Zack.

"Meet us at the Youth Center after." Jason replied.

"Don't take too long, or we won't have time to do everything we planned for today." Billy chimed in.

"Challenge accepted." Kim replied as she poked Billy in his arm.

"We'll see you guys at the Youth Center in a few hours." Trini responded, then all three girls activated their communicators and teleported out, the boys following after to the juice bar.

* * *

Jason and Zack moved together side-by-side as they went through the movements of a kata. It had been a few hours since they'd left the command center and Kim and Trini had taken Phoenix on an impromptu shopping trip.

"That was Trini." Billy said to Jason and Zack as he jogged over to the two after taking a call on Ernie's phone. "She said they'll be here soon."

"Cool." Said Zack, relaxing his stance.

"I wonder how Nix enjoyed her first consumer experience." Said Billy as he picked up his water bottle. He'd been training with Zack and Jason until Ernie called him to take the call.

"Knowing Kim, Phoenix was either overwhelmed or found it fun." Jason joked as he was more than familiar with Kimberly's shopping habits having accompanied her more times than he could remember.

"At least she's never talked Billy or me into going with her. It's either you, Trini, or Tommy." Zack commented slapping Jason on his back.

"We could fix that, you know." Jason remarked giving his friend a mischievous smirk.

"I think I'll pass." Zack replied, laughing at the mock threat. "Hey, we should catch a shower before the girls get here."

"Yeah, we should." Jason agreed and picked up his gym bag, the three men disappearing into the locker room.

* * *

"Hi guys!" Kim said as she bounced up the steps to the juice bar where Billy, Zack, and Jason sat.

"Hey Kim." Jason replied, turning his stool around to face her.

"Someone is full of energy." Zack commented at Kim's perkiness. "How'd it go?"

"Absolutely fantastic!" Kim answered as a wide smile spread across her face.

"For you or Phoenix?" Jason quipped as Kim's happy mood seemed to increase.

"Both, I am a miracle worker." Kim replied, lifting her arms dramatically which made the boys laugh before she dropped them to clasp her hands together in front of her. "She looks amazing."

"Speaking of Phoenix." Billy interjected. "Where is she? And Trini?"

Kim turned towards the entrance of the Youth Center she just came through to see neither Trini or Phoenix behind her.

"They were just behind me." Kim replied as a look of confusion crossed her face. She stepped away from the bar to go back to the entrance to see where the other girls went, the boys following behind her.

"Oh, there you are." Kim said to Trini as she walked through the entrance, but Phoenix was nowhere in sight. "Where's Nix?"

"Outside. She's a little nervous about how she looks." Trini answered as the boys halted on the steps leading to the lower level of the juice bar.

"She's nervous about how she looks?" Zack reiterated Trini's words curious to what would cause Phoenix to be shy.

"Well, she has been accustomed to armor for a significant amount of time." Billy stated. "Having to adopt to modern apperal must be an adjustment for her."

"Wait here." Kim said, gesturing to the guys to stay put. "Let's go get her, Trini." Kim grabbed her by the arm and the two went out the entryway to find their new friend.

"You think it's that big of a change?" asked Zack.

"I have no idea." Jason answered. "She might just not be used to it, like Billy said."

"Come on, Nix." Came Kim's voice as she and Trini re-appeared in the entryway, speaking to a Nix who was concealed behind the corner.

"You really do look fine." Trini commented, echoing Kim's reassurance, gently pulling Nix forward.

"Whoa…" three male voices rang out in unison as Phoenix stepped around the corner of the entryway and into the gym area of the Youth Center. Her leather armor had been traded for a long-sleeved orange crop jumper, a black skirt, short black boots, and her once waist-length hair had been cut to below her shoulder blades with her communicator and piercings still in place.

Trini and Kim shared a look to each other, amused at their male friends' reaction.

"I saw her first." Jason joked, pointing at Zack who stood behind him on the steps.

Zack patted him on the shoulder, still staring at Nix. "Hey bro, dreams don't count."

"Shared dreams especially." Billy added as Zack gestured to him in agreement. Phoenix attempted to duck back behind the corner of the entrance as Kim caught her arm.

"They're just teasing, Nix." Said Kim pulling her back into the juice bar.

"Yeah, we are." Jason replied in an apologetic tone as he moved from his spot again the railing of the steps. "Sorry if we made you uncomfortable, but you really do look fine."

"I concur with Jason's assessment." Billy stated as he came to stand beside Phoenix, making a shy smile appear on her face.

"Thank you." Said Nix as she tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. "I suppose I just need to get accustomed to this type of appearance."

"So…" said Zack rubbing his hands together. "How about we all head out and show Phoenix all that is Angel Grove."

"Absolutely." Jason commented. "Let's head out."

Kim and Trini linked arms with Phoenix as they all walked through the entryway and headed out of the juice bar.


	7. Chapter 7 - Just a Friend

AN: Okay, as I said in the update, I pulled the first version of chapter 7 as I wasn't happy with how it turned out. I did a little revising, and despite this chapter being a ROYAL pain in my side *grumble grumble*, I think this version came out better than the one that was previously updated.

And before anyone asks: No, I am not planning on a Jason/Nix thing.

Disclaimer: Power Rangers belongs to Saban. I own nothing other than Phoenix and the concept of her powers.

* * *

Billy and Phoenix walked through the main entrance of Angel Grove High, having once again volunteered his time to be of assistance to her, this time to get Phoenix registered as per Zordon's suggestion. They'd put together a schedule where she'd have a class with at least one of the rangers until Nix had adopted to the concept and institution that was "high school", and were now on their way to the Youth Center to meet up with the others.

"Is it customary to impart this much "homework" on adolescent youths?" asked Phoenix as she dropped her overburdened bag on to a bench to shrug off the flannel shirt she'd worn to tie around her waist.

Billy grinned at the manner Phoenix had posed the question. As much as Billy loved his friends, occasionally he found it exhausting having to rely on Trini to interpret his particular way of communication. The fact that Nix could effortlessly switch between plain English and his "techno-speak", as the others had so lovingly called it, was refreshing as well as welcoming.

"It seems daunting now, but it's only because our teachers are attempting to get you caught up on all the subjects that are currently being discussed in class." Billy replied as they crossed the street and took a path leading into the park.

After completing her registration, he'd taken Nix on a tour of the campus in order to get her familiarized with where her classes would be. However, in doing so, had also led them to catching some of their teachers still in their classrooms and wasted no time in doling out a week's worth of assignments.

"If it would help, perhaps we can organize to meet and I can assist you in reviewing the course material in order to get you caught up." There he went again. Though Billy had no qualms volunteering his time to help others, especially when it came to furthering ones knowledge, but when it came to Phoenix, he noticed that he seemed to do it almost excessively. Billy pondered the thought as they took the pathway in the park leading towards the Youth Center. He liked Phoenix, yes. She was intriguing and he'd come to very much enjoy her company during the time they'd spent together in the Command Center as he worked with Alpha to help Nix regain control of her talents.

 _"Am I attracted to her?"_ Evaluating his thoughts, Billy glanced over at his walking companion's profile. Phoenix had exotic features with glowing amber eyes that gave the impression a flame danced behind them. One could find it either bewitching or intimidating. Yes, she was attractive, he could fully admit that and it was just a fact, but physical attraction wasn't exactly grounds for anything amorous…was it?

"You want to tutor me?" Phoenix asked, turning her head ever so slightly to Billy. He quickly looked away, suddenly aware that he had been staring at her.

"Well…" Billy started, irritated that his neurons were failing him at the current moment to put a coherent thought together.

"All of us." He finally managed to get out. "I'm sure the guys all have extensive notes from class. I'm positive they'd be willing to lend assistance in order to get you up-to-date on the current lessons."

"So…the little bird has returned." Said a gravely, animalistic voice that Billy recognized and that Phoenix hadn't heard in years.

"Goldar…" they said in unison as they turned to face the source of the voice.

"Looks like Zordon finally let his pet out of her cage." Goldar taunted as he approached them.

"And looks like Rita still has her chore monkey on a short leash." Phoenix countered as she and Billy maneuvered to keep Goldar at a distance.

"You seem to forget, I nearly captured once ten-thousand-years ago, little bird." Goldar replied, in an attempt to unnerve Nix.

""Nearly", being the operative word." Nix retorted.

Goldar raised his sword towards the duo. "Rita still has plans for you, and I intend to see them through."

"Phoenix, you should get out of here. Teleport to the command center." Said Billy as he placed himself between Goldar and Nix, dropping his bag to the ground.

"And leave you alone with him?" she asked incredulously looking at Billy.

"Nix, you can't morph or use your powers in the open." He pleaded, hoping Phoenix would retreat for her own safety.

"You can't protect her, Blue Ranger! Rita will have her." Goldar charged them, interfering with any escape attempts. Billy and Nix jumped away from each other as his sword swung down on the spot they had just evacuated. Putties materialized, surrounding Phoenix as Billy got to his feet.

"Nix!" he called out, anxiety evident in his voice as the putties started to advance on her. He ran forward, only to immediately stop as Goldar positioned himself in front Billy, impeding his path to Phoenix.

"Take her!" Goldar commanded to the putties as they initiated their assault on her. "The phoenix is mine, ranger!" he addressed Billy as Goldar moved to attack.

"Not if I can help it." Billy retorted, reaching behind him for his morpher.

"TRICERATOPS!"

The ringing of metal hitting metal rang out as Goldar's sword met the speared end of the Power Lance.

* * *

"Just perfect…" Phoenix muttered in annoyance as she dropped her bag and eyed the circle of putties surrounding her. She heard Goldar's command for them to attack, and all at once they went after her. She dodged the punch of one, and catching its arm, propelled it over her and down into one of the putties behind her. She threw a kick, connecting with a putty that approached her right then used her momentum to flip out of the way as two more approached.

Gaining some distance from the onslaught, she glanced back at Billy, now morphed, and dueling Goldar. She saw their weapons locked as Goldar put his strength behind his sword, trying to make the blue ranger lose either his ground or his weapon which was keeping the sword from striking him across the chest. Goldar's eyes flashed a murderous red, letting one clawed hand free of his sword to strike Billy across the head with a vicious punch, causing him to stumble back and leaving Goldar the opening he was anticipating. With a swift swing, the sword caught the blue ranger across the chest, sending sparks flying.

"Billy!" Phoenix called out as her feet began to move towards him, before she felt a kick connect with her stomach. She stumbled back, but recovered in time to dodge a punch, grabbing the putty by the wrist and delivering two simultaneous kicks to its back. A second wave of putties appeared before her, wasting no time to attack. Spotting a branch nearby, Nix dove for it, breaking it in half to use as makeshift weapons. She pirouetted around a charging putty, blocking its punch with one of the broken sticks as it approached her. Maneuvering her wrist, she raised the putty arms up and above her to move under as her other hand came up to deliver a strike to its back with the other stick, causing it to fall forward.

Goldar snarled at the scene of his putties having yet to capture Nix. "You clay idiots! Can't you deal with one bird!"

Flipping over a fallen putty's back, Nix landed a crescent kick to another. It stumbled back, then approached to throw a punch, which she maneuvered around, blocking another with one of the sticks, but didn't see the putty that had come up behind her. It swept Nix's feet from under her, making Nix fall onto her back.

"I've had enough of you, ranger." Goldar growled at Billy. He threw out a blast of energy at the Blue Ranger, knocking him back as more sparks rained out from his suit. Turning his attention away from Billy, Goldar teleported over to Phoenix.

"Nix, watch out!" Billy called out as he moved to get on to his knees.

Phoenix rolled away as Goldar appeared next to her. She attempted to get up, as two putties grabbed her arms and brought her to her knees, restraining her. Goldar stepped in front of her, and using the tip of his sword, forced her head up to look him in the eyes.

A twisted sneer formed on Goldar's face, seeing his quarry finally caught as the crease in Nix's brow deepened as she scowled at him, her eyes narrowing in anger. "Rita will be pleased to finally have you at her disposal, phoenix."

The ringing of metal against metal reverberated in Nix's ears as another sword swung downward in front of her eyes to strike Goldar's, a blur of red catching the corner of her eye.

"Back off, Goldar!" came Jason's voice from inside his helmet as his Power Sword pinned Goldar's to the ground. Using the opening he made for her, Phoenix adjusted her position to knock out the feet of one of the putties holding her, sending it crashing to the ground. With one arm now free, she grabbed the other putty holding her and flipped it over to land hard on its back as Jason gave Goldar a hard punch to his jaw. Nix followed it up with a kick to his chest, making Goldar stumbled back.

"Nice moves." Said Jason as he helped Nix up.

"Nice timing." She replied as Billy and Zack ran up to them.

"Nix, are you hurt?" asked Billy.

"A little sore, but I'm okay." She replied looking to the rangers. "Thanks for coming."

Zack placed a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, what friends are for. What do you say we send these clay-heads back to Rita?"

"Sounds like a plan." Jason answered. "You guys take care of the putties, I'll handle Goldar."

"Got it, Jase." Billy replied, the three breaking off from Jason.

"Get out of my way, ranger." Goldar snarled as he pointed his sword at the rangers' leader.

"Not gonna happen." Jason replied defiantely. Goldar charged at him, swinging his sword to strike, which Jason parried. Disengaging from Jason, Goldar swung down again, this time Jason blocking the blow and locking them in a test of will. Quickly, Jason reached for his blade blaster, pointing it at Goldar who eased off his sword to moved out of the way to avoid the blasts at the last second.

"Ignore the rangers for now! Get the phoenix!" Goldar ordered the putties, his patience running thin and his temper rising.

"Hey! We miss the party?" Asked Kim as she and Trini approached Nix, Billy, and Zack.

"Just in time." Zack replied as more putties materialized around them. "Don't these guys ever learn to quit?"

"Perhaps we should try splitting up in order to disperse their number for a more strategic approach." Billy recommended as the four rangers and Nix took on fighting stances.

Nix's eyes fell on to a bench nearby. "I have an idea."

She broke off into a run towards the bench causing some of the putties to give chase after her as the rangers dealt with the ones that remained behind. As she got within reach of the bench, Nix propelled herself into a flip, her hands grasping the back of it. She lifted her feet in the air and over her in a cartwheel, landing on a putty that moved to the other side in an attempt to catch her off-guard. She landed a palm strike to another as it attempted to climb over the bench, making it fall into the ones behind it. They fell to the ground and disappeared. Seeing the last of the putties vanish, the rangers ran over to Jason.

"I am not here to play with you rangers." Goldar growled as he circled around the group. "Give me the phoenix!"

"You're not taking her anywhere, Goldar." Jason stated as his teammates came up behind him, each one bearing their weapon. "Alright guys, let's end this."

Seeing his plans to capture Nix had failed, Goldar snarled at the rangers, choosing to retreat for now. "This isn't over, rangers!" he exclaimed before teleporting away.

"Let's go get Nix, quick." Trini said before they broke out into a dash towards Phoenix.

"Nix! You okay?" Asked Billy upon reaching her. He placed his hands on Nix's shoulders, examining her for any indication she was injured behind his helmet.

"I should be the one asking you that." Nix replied with an amused smile. "I'm okay, a little sore, but okay." She answered, giving Billy's wrist a light squeeze in reassurance.

"Nix, you were great!" Kim exclaimed, seeming impressed with her ability to fight.

"Man…I've never seen putties so persistent." Said Zack.

"No kidding." Jason commented. "And with Goldar, that means Rita knows about Phoenix."

"She does…" Nix replied as she and Billy dropped their hands back to their sides. "Goldar said as much when he attacked us."

"So much for us trying to keep you out of her sight." Trini commented, a tone of worry in her voice.

"No doubt we can count on Rita taking advantage of the fact that Nix can't put her powers into practice to defend herself without drawing attention." Billy stated as he brought his helmeted gaze back to her.

"Yeah, I think you're right." Jason agreed. "We're all going to have to be on alert and on guard even more from now on." He turned his attention to Nix. "You too, Nix."

She nodded in agreement. "I know. This was bound to happen sooner or later."

"Don't worry. We'll be here if Rita or Goldar try to do anything." Trini said as she placed a reassuring hand on Nix's shoulder.

"Yeah, If Rita wants you, she has to go through us first." Said Zack

"You guys, we should get out of here before Goldar or Rita decide to try again." Kim said, placing a hand on Jason's arm.

"Yeah, let's get out of here." He replied.

"Hold on." Nix said before breaking off from the rangers to retrieve the bags she and Billy had discarded earlier. As she made her way back to them, she checked around to ensure they were clear. "Okay, let's go."

Jason nodded, and with one last glance around, they disappeared in streaks of colored energy and light.

* * *

"How many times did this one make it?" Zack asked, seated in what was now in the completed attic room of the Hart House that was serving as Nix's bedroom. As a "Welcome Home" gift, the rangers had set up the room for her.

They had come over for a study session and to help Phoenix catch up in the classes they each had with her. Jason, Billy, and Phoenix had laid claim to the small couch, Zack sat at her desk, while Kim and Trini lay against the headboard of the bed.

"Four times this week. Six if you count Rita attacking twice consecutively on the same day like she did today." Billy replied as he looked up from the text book that was lying in his lap from his spot beside Nix.

"She's either getting desperate, or she actually thinks she will catch us off guard at some point." Trini commented from the her spot beside Kim.

"As if Rita wasn't a big enough of a pain already." Kim replied as she sat up against the headboard of the bed.

"I could use a break." Said Jason from the other side of Nix as he closed his textbook, leaving his notebook between the pages to mark his place in the chapter they were going over. He leaned forward and placed his books and pen on the short coffee table in front of the couch.

"That does sound like favorable suggestion." Billy said as he pushed his glasses up to his forehead to rub his eyes.

"Agreed." Said Nix, setting down one of the stapled stack of notes Trini had copied for her to stretch out her arm that was cramping up from writing.

"Yeah, I'm getting hungry." Zack commented.

"Me too, now that you mention it." Kim replied as she swung her legs over the side of the bed. "How does pizza sound?"

"Awesome!" Zack answered. "How about we go to the place down the street?"

"Sounds like a plan. It'll be nice to get out and get some fresh air." Trini replied, they all stood up and began to file down the steps of Nix's room.

"How are you doing with being out of the command center?" Jason asked Nix as they walked down the steps of Kim's porch, on to the walkway, and then to the sidewalk.

"To say a lot has changed would be an understatement, but it is nice to see something besides the same walls day after day." Nix answered. "And Kim has been wonderful for the time I have been staying with her."

"Aww, you're not so bad yourself." Kim replied with a smile, giving Nix a quick one-armed hug.

"You're handling the change better we thought you would." Trini stated from her spot next to Zack as they took on the formation of a line as they walked: Trini, Zack, Jason, Nix, Billy, and Kim.

"Yeah, we all were kind of expecting it to be kind of a shock to you." Kim commented as she looked down to Nix.

"I thought that as well." Nix replied as she dropped her eyes to the ground in thought. "The only explanation I could think of was the dream where we all encountered each other."

"You mean our shared dream?" Trini inquired, which Nix nodded in reply.

"Each time I appeared to you all in my astral form, before I found any of you, I would be flying over the modern city." Nix explained as she recalled how she'd come across each of the rangers. "It wasn't until you all showed me around that I realized it was Angel Grove that I was seeing."

"So, it would be correct in assuming that's how you learned our identities?" Billy asked as he glanced over at Nix.

"It is." Nix answered. "Your enemies seemed to have no reservations in using your names, and each of you revealed your faces to me. It's how I knew who each of you were when we formally met in command center."

"Wait…that does that count as breaking the condition of not revealing who we are?" Zack asked to the others.

Nix smiled at the question. "Seeing as you all still have your powers, I don't believe so. It was a dream, you all hardly had any control of what was happening in it, and you're in no danger of me exposing your true identities."

"Good thing all of that _was_ a dream." Jason commented as he took several steps ahead of the group to hold open the door to the pizza parlor for his friends. As Nix stepped inside, Jason placed a hand on her arm to gently hold her back. "Hey, Nix, can we talk for bit?"

"Um…yeah, sure Jason." She replied, blinking a few times as the others walked in ahead of them.

"Anything wrong, Jase?" Trini asked.

"Nah, just want to ask Nix about something. You guys go on in, we'll be right there." He replied with a sure smile, the others walking into the restaurant.

The place was noisy with the cacophony of sounds from the music playing over the speakers, chatter of other teens and families who had come out, and the sound effects of the arcade games being played by patrons somewhere in the back. They found an open booth next to a window looking out to the street and sat down. Kim sat in a spot next to the window, having a clear view of Phoenix and Jason as they talked near the entrance. Jason leaned against the hand railing near the doors, his arms folded over his chest as Nix stood just off to the side of him, standing at an angle that left her back towards the window, but her profile in view.

Kim blinked several times as she felt an unpleasant feeling rise up in her as Jason gave Nix one of the half-smiles she had always found to be adorable. Glancing over, Kim saw that Phoenix also wore a small smile on her face.

 _"They're just talking. What am I getting tense about?"_ What WAS she getting tense about? Kim's brows furrowed together wondering where exactly had the odd, unpleasant feeling suddenly come from. Rolling her eyes at herself, she forced the feeling down as she tried to bring her attention to her friends at the table and what they were talking about.

Curiosity getting the better of her, her eyes once again drifted to Jason and Nix outside. She saw Jason nod his head in the direction of the entrance and Nix nodding in agreement to what she assumed was them finally coming inside. As Jason once more moved to hold open the door, Kim felt every muscle in her body tense as Jason placed a hand on Nix's farther shoulder, as he guided her inside.

 _"Okay, Hart, stop it!_ Kim mentally scolded herself feeling completely ridiculous over Jason being friendly to Nix. _"She's our friend, OF COURSE he's going to be nice to her."_

"Hey! About time you two got in here." Zack said giving Jason and Nix a smile as they slid into his side of the booth.

"Sorry, guys. Guess we took a little longer than we thought." Jason replied as he folded his hands together on top of the table.

Kim bit the inside of her cheek as Jason sat down next to Nix. Again, she internally kicked herself. Why was the closeness that developed between them in the last few weeks bothering her so much? Kim liked Nix, she knew that, and now that Nix had been under the same roof as her, they had spent a lot of time getting to know one another. Since the day she and Trini had taken Nix shopping, she'd felt a close bond forming between them, so the fact that she was getting annoyed with Jason's attention to her was making her feel lousy.

 _"Not to mention, she clearly likes Billy."_ Kim thought to herself as she recalled Nix's clumsy attempt to dodge her questioning about her interest in their bright friend during one of their late night conversations before Jason had dropped by. A previous conversation floated back into Kim's head as she attempted to tune back into the conversation taking place at their table as the waitress came over and Zack placed their order.

 **-FLASHBACK-**

 _"I think our Main Brain has a thing for our new Fire Bird." Said Zack as a sly smile formed on his face._

 _"You think so?" Kim bemused at the thought of her clever friend and their newcomer being interested in each other._

 _"Absolutely." Zack replied. "When it comes to matters of the heart, the Zackman is your resident expert." He joked, causing his friends to roll their eyes in response and smile._

 _"He did seem rather fascinated by her. It's not every day you meet an actual phoenix." Trini commented as she pushed a completed bin over to Zack._

 **-END FLASHBACK-**

Kim looked over to Billy, and as she suspected, though he wore a smile and kept engaged with the conversation with everyone, he also kept occasionally glancing over to Jason and Phoenix.

* * *

Despite his best efforts to quell his curiosity and the odd surge of nerves that kept rising in him, Billy couldn't help the intermittent glances he kept giving to Phoenix. His mind was racing with scenarios as to what Jason could have wanted to talk to her about away from the rest of their group.

 _"Don't be so irrational."_ Billy internalized, turning his attention back to the group, suddenly finding his neuroticism to be absurd. Phoenix was proving herself to be a loyal ally and a fast friend to each of the rangers, and at some point or another they'd each pulled one another aside to talk in private. _"That fact alone means there is nothing about their brief moment alone together to get anxious about…right?"_

Once again, Billy couldn't help the impulse to glance over and Phoenix. She was attractive, yes. The level of her intelligence that he'd seen so far was intriguing, her curiosity about their world was endearing and cute…but did that mean he… _liked_ her? For the same reasons, he'd found Marge and Melissa to be both interesting and attractive, yet he'd never felt the odd sensation of each muscle of his body tensing like it was now as his eyes focused on her face. He felt himself blush as Phoenix turned her eyes to him, catching his gaze on her. She blinked in curiosity before a genuine shy smile spread across her face to him.

 _"Okay…maybe I am being a bit ridiculous."_ He thought, now mocking his own thoughts. They'd only known Nix for less than a month, and she was still adjusting to her new life. _"I'm over-thinking matters."_

Jason was simply making Phoenix a friend and making sure she was feeling comfortable with being the new addition to their group, it's how he was. Even now, Billy remembered that he'd voiced to Trini that it would be better to let Nix get to know them better and they her in return. He smiled in relief as their food arrived, thankful for the distraction to get him out of his head as everyone began to dig in.

* * *

A loud cheer rang out from the game room in the back of the pizza parlor, making the whole table turn their heads in the direction of the noise.

"What's all the noise about?" Phoenix asked as she turned back around in her seat to face the others.

Jason grinned at the curious look on Nix's face. "Want to go check it out?"

"Um…no, it's fine." She replied, unsure if she wanted to investigate the source of all the cheering. "Besides, we should get back soon."

"Hey, come one it'll be fun!" Zack chimed in, then turned to the others. "How about it guys? A few games before we get back to the homework grind?"

"Sure, why not!" Trini replied with a smile as she got up from her seat, the others following suit. They weaved through chairs and excited kids running back and forth as they made their way into the game room. Zack and Trini went over and deposited coins into a Super Hang On cabinet as the others crowded around to watch.

Another roar of cheering went up in the room, making Nix turn her head in the direction of the sound. A group of teens were crowded around a zombie shooter game, one of the boys trying his best to beat the current high score on the one they were playing on.

Jason followed Nix's line of sight before turning back to look at her. Smiling, he placed a hand on her shoulder. "Come on, I'll show you how it works."

They broke off from the group, Jason steering Phoenix in the direction of the video game. Billy stood back as he watched Jason deposit coins into the cabinet, then picked up one of the controllers that resembled their Blade Blasters all the while talking to Nix in what he assumed was about how to play the game.

Kim, like Billy, also watched from her spot behind Trini's seat at the game, that same unpleasant feeling rising up in her as before.

"Actually, I think I'm going to get some air." Kim said excusing herself from her friends, suddenly feeling the need to gain a little distance from the sight of Nix and Jason's sudden closeness. She hurried out of the game room and made her towards the front of the restaurant, stepping through the entrance and out into cool air. The sun was just beginning to set as Kim leaned back against the railing near the entrance as she watched cars and people go by.

"Kim? Everything okay?" Trini asked as she stepped through the entrance.

Kim glued a smile onto her face as she looked to her friend in yellow. "Of course. I just wanted a small break from all the noise in there."

Trini moved to stand in front of Kim, not at all convinced. "You sure that's all?"

"Yes, Trini, I'm sure." Kim replied, reaching her hand out to grasp Trini's in a sign of reassurance. She turned her eyes back towards the window as she saw Billy, Zack, Nix, and Jason start to come forward from the game room back over to their table.

"Jason and Phoenix seem to be getting pretty close." Kim stated as she bit her lip, staring through the window at the people in question.

Trini shrugged in return, not thinking much on the statement. "Goldar and Rita have been pretty relentless lately with trying to capture her, and you know Jason. Once a friend is in danger, he switches into his protective mode. He's probably taken on his "Big Brother" role with her."

 _"That does sound like him."_ Kim internalized as she thought over Trini's assessment of the recent closeness between Jason and Nix. "Yeah…I guess you're right."

"Everything okay out here?" came Jason's voice as he stepped out of pizza parlor alone and walked over to the two girls.

"Yeah! Everything's great, just needed a breather from all the noise inside." Kim answered with a laugh in her voice as Jason came to stand next to them.

"It is pretty loud in there." He said, raising his brow in agreement as he shot a smile at her. "The guys are on their way out, then we can head back."

"Oh, I should go give my part of the bill." Said Kim as she moved to stand and head back inside.

"Don't worry, I covered it for you." Jason replied, giving her a smile that was reserved only for her before turning to Trini. "You too, Trini."

"Thanks, Jase." Trini replied, giving him an appreciative smile. "I'll pay you back."

"Me too." Said Kim as Jason waved off the gesture.

"Hey, don't worry about it, and Billy covered Nix, so we're good." He said in return as the others finally exited the restaurant to join them.

"Hey, everyone good to go?" asked Zack, placing an arm on Jason's shoulder.

"Looks like it." Trini answered as they each glanced around at each other.

"Cool, then let's head out!" said Zack as they all once again fell in step with each other heading back in the direction Kim's house.


	8. Chapter 8 - Decisions and Promises

Disclaimer: Power Rangers belongs to Saban. I own nothing other than Phoenix and the concept of her powers.

* * *

Kim sat on her bed, plucking the strings of her guitar absent-mindedly, thinking over the conversation she'd just has on the phone. Tommy had called to tell her he would be coming to visit the following day for the celebration in honor of the Power Rangers. As happy as she was at the thought of seeing Tommy again in a matter of hours, her head was jumbled about what to make of the odd feelings that had developed in her for a certain young man in red. On a long breath out, her fingers stroked down on the strings of her guitar.

"You play beautifully." Said a feminine voice coming from the doorway of Kim's room. She looked up to see Phoenix standing in the door, leaning against the frame, her arms crossed over her stomach.

"Thanks." Kim replied, giving her a small grin in return. The smile quickly faded as her eyes dropped to the floor of her bedroom and a slight frown creased her brow as a thought crossed her mind. She brought her eyes back up to Phoenix. "Nix, can we talk?"

Phoenix blinked at the question, dropping her arms and straightening up. "Of course, Kim." She stepped inside the room as she signaled for her to come in and sit on the bed beside her.

Kim hugged the body of her guitar against her as she shifted her position to face Nix. "Phoenix…I'm really sorry for being so… _weird_ lately."

"I thought something was troubling you, but assumed you would tell in your own time." Nix replied, shifting to fold one of her legs under her on the bed. "Did I do something wrong?"

"No!" Kim quickly replied, placing a hand on Nix's arm. Her shoulders slumped, reaching up to tuck her hair behind her ear. "I just have a lot on my mind and I'm not sure what to do about any of it."

"Then, do you mind if I ask what has been troubling you?" Nix asked, an expression of worry crossing her features.

Kim looked off to the side, biting her lip in thought. She looked back to Nix, then with a breath, sat her guitar down beside her on the bed. "There's this…friend who I really like, but before we could figure out if there is something between us, he sort of left."

An understanding smile formed on Nix's face. "And there's been no word from this particular friend since his departure?"

"Not at first, but recently, he's gotten back in contact with me." Kim answered.

"I get the sense there is something else besides this "friend" that is weighing on you." Nix stated as she listened and observed Kim.

"Yeah…" Kim replied, looking down at her hands as she played with her fingers. "Lately, I've been having some…really intense feelings for this other friend that I've known for a really long time."

"And it's left you unsure about how you really feel for both." Nix concluded, finishing Kim's thought.

"Right." Kim replied. "The first, I liked him pretty much the moment I first saw him. The second…I've known him practically my whole life. He's like my brother…or was…I'm not really sure when all that changed."

Nix adjusted her position to sit Indian-style atop of Kim's bed, fully facing her. "The one who recently got back in contact, I take it you two haven't seen each other in a while?"

Kim shook her head in the negative. "Not in over a month." She pulled one of her legs up, holding it against her. "That was actually him on the phone earlier. He said he's coming in for the celebration tomorrow to honor the Power Rangers."

"That's good!" Nix replied enthusiastically. "It'll give you the chance to talk to him and see where things stand between the two of you."

"Yeah, but I still don't know what to do about my other friend." Kim countered taking on a confused expression.

"Well…how do you think of him?" Nix asked in an attempt to get Kim to analyze her feelings.

She looked off to the side, her eyes landing on a spot on the floor as she thought over the question. "I trust him, and I know that he'll always be there for me." Kim answered. "I love him."

"But, it's not an amorous love where you're willing to risk the close friendship between you two?" Nix posed as more of a statement than a question.

"No." Kim answered on an exhale. "Besides, I think he may like someone else, and I'm not entirely sure I see him that way even with what I've been feeling lately."

Kim sat back against her headboard, pulling one of her pillows into her arms to hug. "And the idea of risking our friendship just to find out, and see it all fall apart if it didn't work out has me terrified."

"What about the other?" Nix asked, Kim shrugged in response.

"We haven't really seen if it could work out between us." Kim answered, leaning forward to place her elbows in her lap as she buried her chin into the pillow.

Nix cocked her head to the side, a trait Kim had come to learn as a sign she was thinking something through. "Do you want to?"

Kim nodded into the pillow. "Yeah…I think I do. If it didn't work…I think we can still be friends."

Nix placed a comforting hand on her wrist. "It sounds like you already made your choice."

"Then, what do I do about my feelings for my other friend?" Kim asked as she dropped her pillow in her lap, pouting at Nix.

"You said you trust him?" Phoenix questioned, echoing Kim's earlier words. Kim simply shook her head in the affirmative. "Then trust that he wants you to be happy."

Kim gave Phoenix a genuine smile. "He does…thanks, Nix."

"You're welcome, Kim." Nix replied with a smile as she stood up to leave. "It also helps to not over-think things once and a while." She commented with a crinkle of her nose.

"Yeah, you're right." Kim replied, putting her pillow back down beside her to pick up her guitar and place it on the floor against the wall next to her bed. Kim looked up to see Nix eyeing the guitar. "Do you like it?"

Nix shrugged in reply. "It reminds me of something similar I used to play a long time ago."

A gentle smile formed on Kim's face as she saw nostalgia cross Phoenix's eyes. "You can play it sometime if you'd like."

Nix returned the smile, but shook her head in the negative. "Thank you, but I appreciate the gesture. Goodnight, Kim."

"Night, Nix." Kim replied as Nix turned to leave the room. She bit her lip as something crossed her mind. "Hey, Nix?"

She turned around in the doorway to face Kim. "Yes?"

Kim swung her legs over the side of her bed, sitting up straight. "I'm just curious…what did you and Jason talk about the other night when we all went out to eat?"

"You should ask him that." Nix simply answered.

Kim raised an eyebrow in response. "Why?"

"I think it's something you need to hear from him." Nix replied with a glint in her eyes.

Kim blinked a few times suddenly realizing the reason of Nix's suggestion. A calm, thankful smile formed on her face. "You knew who the "other friend" was the whole time, didn't you?"

Nix gave her a knowing smile. "Night, Kim." She replied, gently pulling the door closed behind her.

* * *

Kim pushed open her window, peering outside towards her backyard. She smiled at seeing what she was hoping for. Across the way, on the other side of the fence that separated her yard from his, a light glowed through the curtained windows of Jason's bedroom.

 _"_ _He's still awake."_ She ducked back inside her room, crossing over to her bedroom door. Opening it, Kim quickly checked the hallway. The house was dark except for the soft glow of light coming through the bottom of the door that led up to Nix's room.

 _"_ _She's asleep."_ Kim quietly closed the door to her room after seeing the door to her mother's room was closed and the light off. She made her way back over to her open window, then placing her hands on the sill as she would a balance beam, hoisted herself up onto the window sill.

Carefully and gracefully, she swung her legs out onto the stretch of room below her window. Once she'd completely exited her room, she dropped a foot onto the branch Jason had used many times before to climb into her room. Finding her footing, Kim descended the tree using the same worn footholds he used, quietly dropping to the ground. Facing the fence that separated their yards, Kim quietly sprinted towards it, and calling in her gymnastic training, vaulted over the partition safely landing in the Scotts' backyard.

Kim looked behind her towards her house, the light still on in Nix's room glowed through the window, but otherwise, all was quiet. Turning back around, she crossed the yard to stand a few feet before the homemade pull-up bar Jason and his dad had made. Kim dashed towards it, launching herself up and grabbing onto the horizontal bar. Once again, using her skills as a gymnast, she propelled herself to swing upwards. Once vertical, she did a toe-on, and launched herself the small distance forward to grab onto the railing of the upper deck of the Scotts' house that was right in front of the door leading to Jason's room.

Kim smiled proudly to herself for, once again, reaching his room without giving herself away using her unique method. Admittedly, she could have just taken the steps up from the lower deck, but being made of wood and years old, they had a tendency to creak under weight. How Jason managed to always avoid making a sound when he took them up after sneaking back to his house from hers, she had no idea, but that just re-enforced her thought that somehow he was part ninja.

Kim tip-toed up to his window, happy to see his light still on despite the late hour. She peaked in where there was a slit in the curtains, a wide smile forming on her face as she saw him sitting up on his bed reading a martial arts biography. He was shirtless, wearing a pair of sweats, with one leg stretched out on his bed while the other was bent at the knee for his book to rest on. Lifting a finger, Kim tapped gently on the pane of glass with her nail. She saw as he turned his attention away from his book to look in the direction of the sound. Furrowing his brow in curiosity, he set down his book on his bedside table and shifted off his bed. Kim stepped back far enough for Jason to see her face as he lifted his curtain to see who his late night visitor was, and at the sight of her, his face lit up into a wide grin.

He unlatched his window and pushed it up to open it. "Hey you." He said in a low, but cheerful voice.

"Hi." Kim replied sharing his smile.

"Come in." Jason said as he held out his hand to help her climb inside through the window. Once she was in, he turned to move back over to his bed and sit down. "Couldn't sleep?"

"No, just felt like coming to see you." Kim answered as she sat down beside him on his bed. "And, I wanted to talk to you."

"What about?" he asked as he shifted to face her. His eyes roamed over her face in the low light of his lamp on the bedside table, the soft glow reflecting off her hair and in her eyes. _"She gets more beautiful each time I see her."_

Toeing off of shoes, Kim scooted herself further on the bed, shifting herself to face him and cross her legs Indian-style. "Tommy called earlier this evening."

Jason lifted his eyebrows in acknowledgment as he moved to sit back against his headboard. "Yeah, he called me too."

"He told you he was coming to visit for the ceremony tomorrow?" Kim asked watching him sit back. Her eyes moved on their own, looking over the bare skin of his torso and arms. She could see each muscle shift at his movements. Catching herself, Kim forced her eyes back to Jason's. _"There is something seriously wrong with me."_

Jason thought he caught Kim's eyes roaming over his form, giving his head a light shake, he pushed the thought away. "Yeah, said he'll be at the park tomorrow and that he'll meet up with us at the Youth Center after."

Kim nodded, falling silent. She dropped her head down a bit as a thought came to her. "…Jase?"

"Yeah?" he replied watching her.

"Do you think this means he's finally coming back?" Kim asked, raising her head at a slight angle that made her hair fall over her shoulder.

He let out a deep sigh. "I don't know, Kim." He watched as her eyes dropped back down, hurt crossing her features. "You have no idea how much I wish I could tell you it did." _"I hate how much it's hurting you."_

Kim uncrossed her legs to crawl over to the other side of his bed and sat down beside him. She linked an arm through his as she rested her head against his shoulder. "I know, Jase."

He rested his cheek against the top of her head as they let silence fall over them. A large part of him wanted nothing more than to find Tommy and tell him that he was ruining a good thing with Kim with this distance deal. At the same time, he knew it wasn't his place to show what Tommy's feelings were to Kim. That was something Tommy had to do himself. All he could do was continue to be the rock she needed him to be right now.

"Jason…can you make a promise to me?" Kim asked, breaking the silence.

Moving his head to rest it against the headboard, he turned it slightly to face her. "What kind of promise?"

Turning her head as well, she rested her chin against his shoulder. "If, for any reason at all, you lost your powers…"

"Kim…" he interrupted.

" _If…_ " Kim continued, raising a finger at him in emphasis. "…you did, please, don't just disappear on me."

Jason remained silent, observing the look in Kim's eyes that silently begged him to never abandon her. He felt a sharp pang in his heart at the expression, the look bringing him back to the day Kim's father left when her parents finally divorced and how devastated she had been when she showed up outside his room that night.

"Jase?" Kim said softly looking at him, still waiting for an answer.

"I promise I will never disappear on you." He finally said, giving her one of the softest and sweetest smiles she'd ever seen from him. She knew Jason was extremely reserved with expressing his feelings and preferred to keep them to himself. Kim felt her heart skip a beat as a content smile spread across her face.

"Good." She said, once again laying her head against his shoulder.

"And, if for whatever reason I do leave, I swear I will keep in touch." He added, causing Kim to look back up at him.

"Why would you leave?" she asked, a look of confusion furrowing her brow.

Jason smiled, lifting a finger at her. "I said _"for whatever reason"_ , I'm not saying I will, but you never know what might happen." He gave a slight shrug of the shoulder she rested on. "Think of it as a contingency plan."

Kim rolled her eyes, giving him a slight smile as she rested her head back against him. "Alright, deal."

He shrugged his shoulder again. "Hey, this promise works both ways, you know."

Kim smiled against him. "I won't disappear or lose touch if I ever leave Angel Grove."

"Promise?" Jason asked, a slight tone of humor in his voice.

"Pinky swear." Kim replied, raising her pinky to him. She felt his body shift in a light chuckle. Rolling his eyes, he raised his pinky in return, both of them linking them together.

"Pinky swear." He said in return.

Kim lifted their pinkies to her lips, pressing a light kiss to their linked fingers as if to cement their promise to each other.

"Good." She said as she dropped their hands back down. Jason felt his heart skip when he saw Kim press her lips to their linked fingers before dropping them back down. He felt her give him a small mudge against his arm.

"You do know that if you break this promise, I have full permission to hunt you down and yell at you for doing it?" Kim joked, snuggling into his arm. She felt his body shake as he laughed.

"And if you break it, I have full permission to hunt you down and drag your butt back to Angel Grove." Jason said in return to the mock threat.

"Fair enough." Kim answered, a small smile etched on her face. "Jase?"

"Hmm?" He replied, the sound reverberating in her ear as she lay against him.

"What were you and Phoenix talking about the other night when we all went out to eat?" Kim bit her lip, finally asking the question that had pushed her to come see him. _"Why is it such a big deal that I know, anyway?"_ She agreed with both Nix and Trini that she wanted to see where things with Tommy could go, but that topic continued to pester her mind.

"She didn't tell you?" Jason asked in return, looking at Kim from the corner of his eye.

"No, I didn't ask." She fibbed. _"She said I should hear it from you."_ She felt his shoulders move in a shrug.

"Nothing much, I just asked if she would be interested in training with me." He answered.

"Training?" Kim echoed, turning her head up to look at the angled view of his face. _"That's all?"_

"Yeah. After watching her fight alongside us for the last few weeks, I think her style is pretty cool. I asked if she would show me some of her techniques so I can work them into mine, and I'm going to do to the same for her." He looked down at Kim, an amused smile forming on his face. "Why do you want to know?"

Kim shrugged, looking down at her hands. "You two have gotten pretty close and I thought you might like her."

"As a friend, sure. She's turning out to be pretty great." Jason responded. "Beyond that, no."

"Why not?" Kim asked, curiosity getting the better of her. _"Why am I asking?"_

She felt his body shake as he chuckled. "Well, she is pretty, and her curiosity is cute, but we still don't know her all that well. Besides, I've seen the way Billy looks at her. I'm not going to get in his way." One of his half-smiles formed on his face. "I'm pretty sure Nix likes Billy too, they're both just too shy to say anything about it to each other."

Kim smiled in agreement, remembering Nix's clumsy attempt to side-step her question about Billy. "Do you think we should help them?"

"Nah." Jason replied. "I get the feeling they'll figure it out eventually."

"Yeah." Kim agreed. "I think they will too."

"Hey." Jason said glancing over to his clock. "I should get you back, it's almost 1am."

"It's that late already?" she said sitting up to look at the clock sitting on the bedside table on the opposite side of Jason.

"Yeah, come on, let's get you home." He said, sitting up.

"It's only on the other side of the fence, I can go alone." Kim said as she moved to climb off his bed.

"I'll feel better walking you home." Jason replied.

"Jase…" she said looking at him while pulling on her shoes.

"Kim…" he said looking at her as he laced up his sneakers. They smiled at each other, getting into the same loop they usually got into when he wanted to help and she didn't want to trouble him.

"Okay." She yielded.

He stood up and walked over to his dresser, taking out a shirt and pulling it on before closing the drawer.

"Okay, let's go." He said, moving over to the door that led on to the upper deck. Pulling it open carefully as to not make it creak, he let Kim step out first.

 _"_ _Always the gentleman."_ She thought as she watched him step out after her, pulling the door closed. Jason took the lead as they walked down the deck to the stairs, well aware that Kim wasn't as familiar as he was with where to step to avoid making them creak under their weight. Kim paused outside the window of the guest room that neighbored Jason's. She peaked inside of the familiar window, thinking about the times she'd spent in it when she used to sleep over. It had become her bedroom for a short time in their childhood when Jason's house had been her refuge.

"Kim." Jason quietly spoke her name. She turned to see him standing at the steps, one foot on the lower step as he smiled at her, knowing where her mind was. "Come on." He said, gesturing with his head down the steps.

"Coming." She answered, following behind him. She fell in-step behind him as they walked down the stairs of the deck, paying attention to where he placed his foot. Once at the bottom, they crossed the yard to the fence. Kim hauled herself up as Jason placed a hand on her back to keep her steady. She gripped his hand as she crossed over the top, then released it as she dropped down. Jason followed after, hauling himself up and over with ease.

Kim noted the dark attic window, signaling that Nix had gone to sleep as they started through the yard to the tree beside her window. She turned to Jason, wrapping her arms around his neck in a hug. "Goodnight, Jason."

His arms wrapped around her, returning the embrace. "Goodnight, Kim."

They let each other go after a moment. "See you in school tomorrow?"she asked.

"You bet." He replied, giving her the half-smile she loved so much.

Kim smiled back, then turned to the tree. Placing his hands on her waist, Jason helped her up to reach the first branch. Once she had a firm grip, she hauled herself into the tree and climbed her way up with a gracefulness he was familiar with. He stepped back a bit to watch her crawl onto the stretch of roof below her window, then slip inside. She stuck her head out once more to look down at him.

"Night, Jase." Kim said in a voice loud enough for him to hear, raising a hand to wave at him.

"Night, Kim." He replied, mimicking the gesture. She watched as he turned away to head back across the yard.

"Hey, Jase?" she called out quietly before he was out of earshot.

He turned around at the sound of her calling to him. "Yeah?"

"I love you." She said.

Jason smiled sweetly at the girl in the window. "I love you too."

He walked backwards a few steps to look at her before turning back around. She watched him make the short trip back across before he disappeared inside the door to his room. She waited until the light in his room went out, then pulled her window shut for the night and head to bed.


	9. FOF UPDATE

Hey all!

I've been receiving a lot of emails lately of newcomers to this along with some follows and reviews asking for updates, and I have seen and read them all! I have. I do still have plans for this, I even have an entire chapter typed up, just not posted. The reason this took an unexpected hiatus, is just I have to deal with life stuff and some other things.

Right now, I'm facing a move to a new state in a few weeks as well as I have been at the grindstone with planning out a big project that I have wanted to do for a LONG time, so this kind of took a back seat while I gave my attention and focus elsewhere. I do, however, want to come back to this as I still have storyline that has been running around in my head for Jason & Kim, as well as Billy & Nyx. Maybe after the move, I'll be able to see about coming back and getting new chapters posted. I'll try to get the one I have written out already proofread and posted when I get the chance to get to it.

Thanks all for the all being shown to this. I'll try to get back to it when time allows.

XOXO


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